The Past Always Catches Up
by ICD
Summary: sequel to: Smokescreen and Starting Anew. The past is never far away. Story is complete!
1. Day of disappearance

Disclaimer: Even though I would love to claim them all as mine, I can't because it would be a lie. I only own those I thought up myself. So I don't own the characters known from pretender and other shows (original characters are mine though) and I don't intend to make any money with my little story and because I don't make any money with the stories and I am a poor student with no money, you can spare the effort to sue.

Author's Note: I know it's been ages since I last posted. Real life and the new pretender-archive over at missing pieces dot org have been eating my time. But now the first chapter of the sequel is there. As I promised. The third part in a long series:  
Please read these stories first: 1. "Smokescreen" and 2. "Starting Anew"

Author's Note II: This story will start rolling right here and now.  
The story will turn into a crossover with two other series. The first crossover series will just make a very brief appearance that will only last for two chapters to make room for the 'real' crossover series.  
I hope you will enjoy the ride. Tell me if you do (and also if you don't). Thanks and now I won't keep you from reading the story any longer. Enjoy!

x x x x x x x

The Past Always Catches Up

_Day of disappearance_

She looked around once more. There was a strange feeling: a tingling sensation that made her feel edgy. Something was just not right. She quickened her steps, readjusting Andrew on her hip.

Everything had been quiet for so long; too long. After more than half a year of travelling the States aimlessly and looking over their shoulders the small group had become tired and decided to settle down.

The Major and Emily had finally managed to shake the Centre from their heels and had come to join the small family. Ethan had appeared at their doorstep one day.

Jay was long since an accepted member of Jarod and Parker's little family. Parker had come to acknowledge Jay as her son rather than Jarod's clone or brother. The relationship between Jay and Jarod, based on identical genes, long thought of as brotherhood, slowly turned into a father-son-relationship. Jay asked for advice and guidance more often these days and Jarod readily accepted the role.

Both families had settled down not far apart from each other in New York. Jay and Jarod both agreed the Centre would start their search on the other side of the planet, or at least on the other end of America. So they had thought it safer to stick around the east coast and found a big city to be more secure than a small town, providing them with the anonymity they needed.

Yet they keep a suspicious eye on their surroundings.

Again, she looked over her shoulder, trying to make out the source of danger she felt.

She had to move quickly.

Parker let her gaze wander over her surroundings. A mall, a hotel, a small shop selling antiques, a police station and a fire department.

Her head shot back around.

A police station

She adjusted the boy on her hip once again and then started towards the station. Her strides got bigger and the steps echoed in shorter intervals as she neared the police station.

Suddenly, there was a squeal of tires. She didn't need to turn around to know the oncoming car was directed to her.

She broke into a run, Andrew clutched tightly to her chest and protecting him with her own body.

So close. The police station was so close and yet it seemed as if she had to travel a million miles and time was stretching out into nothingness.

It was one of the events one saw happening in slow motion and had yet no way of changing or controlling.

Racing up the steps, she broke through the doors to the safety of the police station just as two cars skidded to a halt on the curb in front of the station.

Parker stood with her back to the room, her gaze fixed on the two black town cars on the pavement. One of the persons inside of one of the cars looked up at her. Their gazes locked. Lyle shot her an icy stare, furious that she had gotten away and then she saw him bark a short command at the driver, setting the car in motion so that it quickly vanished from her view.

She felt as if all solid structure had left her body. Her bones felt like they had turned into jelly and she staggered backwards, only to bump into a person.

"Hey ma'am, watch where you're going," a male voice snapped.

"Sorry," she whispered, not getting any other words out and not turning towards the source of the voice, her wide eyes still fixed on the entrance as if a ghost was just coming through that door.

"Bosco," another voice scolded; a woman.

All this registered in her mind but it was stored away for further realization, her conscious still occupied with the recent events.

"Ma'am, you ok?" the female voice asked, concerned.

She didn't reply but felt herself being guided over to a bench and gently pressed down. "Bosco, get some water. She looks awfully pale. I'll see if I can get anything out of her."

"Damn it, Faith. Why do you always have to play saint? We have other things to do. We have to get moving," he grumbled.

"Bosco," she snapped. "Get the water!" With that she turned back to the distraught woman and crouched down in front of her. "Ma'am, are you ok? What happened?"

Parker was still staring straight ahead to the door. "Followed," she managed to choke out.

"You were being followed?"

Parker nodded weakly and then snapped out of her shock, at least as far as to look at the child in her arms. "Andrew," she breathed and felt herself tear up. She buried her face in his neck for a brief moment and started planting tiny kisses on his head.

"Here's the water. Can we go now?" the male officer returned and impatiently looked at his partner.

"No, we can't. This woman's obviously in trouble and what do you think our job is?"

He groaned and turned around.

The police officer held out the water to the woman in front of her. "Ma'am, here's something for you to drink."

Parker reached unseeingly for the cup and took a sip. The movements were born out of the repetition of daily life, but the moment she felt the cold water touch her lips her eyes focussed and her head snapped up. She looked around and straightened.

The police officer crouching in front of her watched the transformation in astonishment. Moments ago she had faced a heavily distressed and nearly unresponsive woman and now she found herself looking into steel blue eyes that were hard and focussed back on the reality.

"Who are you?"

The brisk voice startled the police officer out of her silent observation. She quirked an eyebrow and looked up at her partner, who had turned back to them sometime during the change the woman had made through. She saw that his eyebrows were high on his forehead as well. "I'm officer Yokas," she stated calmly and got up from her crouched position. "Ma'am, could you please tell us what happened and who you are?"

The steel blue eyes narrowed briefly and then she nodded curtly. "My name's Melina Stuart."

"A minute ago you told me that someone followed you," officer Yokas stated.

"Do you know who followed you?" the male officer asked, suddenly interested, and took a step towards the two women.

Both the woman and her child's eyes flew up to him. "And who might you be?" the brunette asked harshly.

The two officers shared a glance. "Officer Boscorelli," he answered curtly. Just as his female partner, he was wondering what this was about. Only moments ago this woman had been a mere shell and then she had switched into a hard and tightly controlled woman. "Do you know who was following you?" he repeated his question.

"Can I make a phone call? I need to inform the boy's father," she said, calmly and yet effectively evading the question without sounding too suspicious.

"Do you want us to drive you home?" officer Yokas asked.

"Yes, once I have spoken to my husband, I would really appreciate that," she nodded. Without having to think about it, she led the police officers to believe that Jarod and her were married and since they were using the same family name, anything else would have been suspicious. "Can I now please make that phone call?"

"Of course," the female officer answered and led the way.

Once the tall brunette was on the phone, officer Yokas stepped up next to her partner who leaned against the doorframe. "That was some encounter!"

"You can say that. I don't think I've ever seen someone switch between two personas that quickly. She was barely responsive one moment and the next second she seemed to be concentrated, as if on a mission. Clearly back into the reality and now having a purpose," he shook his head.

"Just what I thought," Yokas nodded. "Anyway, we should give her a ride home and try to get some more details out of her. Or see if she wants to make a report," she added.

Meanwhile, Parker was at the telephone dialling Jarod's cell phone number. He picked up after the first ring. "What?" he asked breathlessly.

"Jarod?"

"Yeah," he said but before he could go on, she interrupted him.

"Jarod, they're here. I was being followed. Lyle's here."

"Yes, I know. They have Jay," he growled.

"They _what_?" she screamed, making the two police officers jump and look up at her. She didn't mind, if she had realized it at all. She was too deeply immersed in the conversation.

"The school called me only minutes ago. I'm on my way over there as we speak. Are you and Andrew ok?" he asked, fear and worry lacing his voice.

"Yes, we are. I'm at a police station. I'll head over to the high school as well. I'll meet you there," she said and then terminated the connection without waiting for his reply.

She strode out of the office where she had been allowed to make the phone call and stopped in front of the two officers. "Could you give me a ride to the Strabruk's High School?" she asked in a businesslike tone.

"Ma'am, don't you want us to bring you home?" Faith asked incredulously.

The brunette pinched the bridge of her nose with her fingers and adjusted the little boy on her hip. "Look, I really need to get to the high school and I would greatly appreciate it if you could give me a ride, otherwise I doubt that I'll get there in one piece, so could you please just drive me there?"

Bosco frowned at her. "Can you tell us what happened?"

"As I said, I was being followed and now I really need to get to the high school. It's an emergency," she growled dangerously, trying to hide her dark thoughts and the urge to just strangle both officers.

"Ok, we'll drive you," officer Yokas gave in.

"Thank you," she nodded curtly and then they were on the way.

To be continued…

You might have recognized the series "Third Watch" in this chapter. Well, at least part of the 'Third Watch'-team is mentioned. It'll stay that way – with only the police department involved in this story, for I found no room for the rest of the 'team' to appear. This series will keep mingling with the story only for the next one or two chapters and then vanish again with a change of setting. The 'real' crossover will have more room and importance but I won't tell you now which series it will be. The next chapters will tell you!

Give me feedback, please!

Not read enough stories about the Pretender? There're tons of more stuff in the missing pieces archive. To get there, go into my profile and follow the link… and then enjoy reading.


	2. Abduction

Disclaimer: see part one

Author's Note: Angsty chapter!

Thanks to:

imag1ne: Glad you liked the start and happy to hear that you think it didn't matter if you had seen Third Watch or not. Thanks for your review and now enjoy the next chapter!

Gemini-M: Yeah, it was a cool show… even though they only showed the first three seasons in Germany until now (I hope they plan on changing that someday). Glad you liked the crossover with it! We'll see about Parker/Andrew reaching Jarod safely and them getting Jay back. Thanks for reviewing and now read on and enjoy.

phi4858: Yeah, a definite change in events. This will be more action packed than the first two stories. Glad you like it so far; the 'real' crossover will come up next chapter. Oh and definitely 'poor Jay'. Thanks for your feedback and now enjoy chapter 2.

bloodymary2: No need for begging. Here's the next chapter. Glad you liked the start so much. Ok, I'll see what I can do about the summary of the 'real' crossover. Thanks for reviewing and now go on with chapter two and enjoy!

NYT: Glad I got you hooked once more. That's what I've been trying to do :smiles: . Thanks for the review and now enjoy the new chapter!

xx x x x x x

The Past Always Catches Up Part 2

_Abduction_

Everything was dark, and getting darker the further he plunged.

They had come out of nowhere, grabbing him before he could react.

For a fleeting moment he had been frozen with shock and then his instincts had kicked in, making him flail his arms and kick out.

The black hood had been placed over his head even before he had been in the car, effectively blocking his sight, disorienting him.

It hadn't kept him from fighting, it had just made it an impossible mission to succeed in; yet he had tried.

The back of his legs had roughly connected with the steel edge of a car.

He had lost his balance and forceful arms had drawn him backwards. He tried to grab something to steady himself and keep him upright, but blind, fumbling and in foreign arms he crashed onto the floor of the car and was momentarily winded. The moment he had recovered though, he had resumed his kicking and screaming.

He had been forced upward and into a seat, the car long since moving by then.

Trying to break free, he had increased his kicking once more but then his arms had been forced behind his back.

A person had been seated on either side of him.

He had hit their shins several times during the struggle, an odd sense of triumph surging through him every time he scored.

Suddenly one of the people - they were without doubt sweepers - had begun twisting his right arm behind his back in a grip that left no room for discussion. They wouldn't let him remain upright.

Jay had suppressed a grunt of pain when the grip got even more demanding.

His head had gone practically down to his knees. He had clenched his eyes shut in agony when the sweeper had forced his arm further upward, despite his already awkward position.

The one sitting on his left side had bent over him. He had been able to feel the person's breath at the back of his neck. "See, you should stop fighting. It'll make this much easier… Gemini," he had cruelly whispered.

Jay had tensed at the choice of words and then his instincts and anger had kicked in once again. He was not about to give in that easily. He would fight them.

He had jerked his head upwards, the back of his head solidly connecting with someone else's.

There had been a grunt of pain and the cracking of a bone fracturing.

Satisfaction had been searing through his veins. The sensation had been short-lived; his arm had been forced up higher again.

This time he hadn't been able to suppress the high pitched scream that erupted at the pain that was inflicted by his captors - yet he started kicking with his feet again.

"Sedate him," the person sitting right from him had grunted, his voice muffled - probably by a hand holding a bleeding nose.

That thought had registered somewhere in the boy's mind but it had been overshadowed by the implementations the words had left, making the efforts to get free more desperate.

Expecting an injection, he had been completely unprepared for the cloth that had suddenly been pressed firmly over his mouth and nose.

He had kept on fighting, kicking at his captors while repressing the sensation of pain that was shooting through his arm and upper back at his motions.

Effective defence hadn't been possible though when hindered by a black hood over his head, blocking the vision, one arm jerked up cruelly behind his back so that his upper torso was nearly touching his legs and at the same time breathing in pure ether with every puff of air.

Slowly the world around him faded. There wasn't even darkness left; there was nothing.

To be continued…

I know this was short. Sorry. Next chapters are gonna be longer!


	3. Introductions and plans

Disclaimer: see part one

Author's Note: So here's the chapter where I'm gonna introduce the 'real' crossover-series. Enjoy!

Thanks to:

Pez:blushes: Thank you so much. I'm glad you like the way I'm going with this. Thanks for telling me so. Now read on and enjoy the new part.

KatieQ: Well, read on to find out where I'm headed. Thank you for reviewing; now enjoy chapter 3.

bloodymary2: I'm glad to hear that you think the last chapter was just right. I just found that it had to stand for itself. Anything else might have lessened the impact of it. Thanks for reviewing and here's the next chapter now.

phi4858: Oh, yes, there have to be bad boys. They make it interesting. I know the last chapter was short but this one will make up for that. Thanks for your review and now read chapter 3 and enjoy!

Lisa: Wow, thanks for that big a compliment! I really appreciate that. :beams: Glad you liked it that much. Hope this chapter will suit you as well. Thanks for reviewing and now read on and enjoy.

Gemini-M: Glad you liked the scene, even if it was short, and glad you liked the way Jay came across in it. Thanks for your words and now move on and have fun reading.

x x x x x x x

The Past Always Catches Up Part 3

_Introductions and plans_

The second Parker had terminated the connection Jarod was re-dialling.

"Charles," his father's voice greeted him.

"Dad," Jarod pushed down the accelerator and swivelled round a corner. He crossed the next traffic lights two seconds after they turned red, ignoring the other drivers hitting their brakes to the screaming point.

"Jarod, what is it?" the Major asked, at once alert upon hearing the distress in his son's voice and some background sounds that he didn't like.

"I don't have the time to explain it right now. Just pack some things and grab Ethan and Emily. Head to the airport, I'll meet you there in about an hour, maybe a bit later."

"Jarod, what is it?" the Major demanded more harshly.

"Just meet me there and make sure that no one follows you," Jarod said and then terminated the connection. He threw the cell phone on the passenger's seat and concentrated back on driving so he would get to the high school in one piece.

He could have told his father what had happened but he feared that once he spoke out what had happened, reality would sink in and leave him as an immobile shell, not able to focus on getting Jay out of the Centre's clutches and keeping the rest of his family safe.

Jarod punched the steering wheel. He shouldn't have allowed Jay to go to high school. He knew that he was being unreasonable and he would have never forbidden the boy to go to school. Jay searched for some kind of normality and keeping him at home wouldn't have helped him find anything. They had minimized the risk by agreeing to keep a low profile.

Jay consciously and purposefully did tests worse than he could have. The major reason why he was in high school at all, though he was bored to death by what they taught, was that he had wanted to make some friends and have some social contact; a wish that they all had supported.

The results had spoken for themselves. Jay had become more self-confident after quickly becoming well respected and finding friends quickly. Good looking as he was, he didn't have to fight for female company, something he was still a bit uncertain about.

Despite the situation, Jarod smiled when he thought about Jay's sometimes awkward movements with the opposite sex. Jay sometimes reminded him too much of himself.

The smile faltered when Jarod applied the breaks and skidded to a halt in front of the school's entrance door. "Shit," he swore loudly when he looked around. Then he breathed deeply and got out of the car. The place was crawling with police. He looked around once more, taking in all the things that were happening there.

Had someone asked him, he would have been able to tell most of the number plates from the cars around, tell exactly how many police cars were present and where they were standing and what colour the pullover one of the teachers, at the front gate, had. All these facts registered in his mind without him having to concentrate upon them.

He purposefully strode towards the scene of action.

A burly police officer tried to stop him when he was ducking under the police tape to get to the scene. "You're not allowed to pass, sir. A crime happened here and this scene's closed for the public so can you please retreat behind the tape?" he asked politely. Obviously he hadn't said it too many times yet otherwise the instructions would have been shorter and more harsh.

"I know a crime happened here. My son has been kidnapped," Jarod growled and pushed past the officer - this time without further hindrance.

He grabbed the next best police officer that ran over his way. "Who's in charge here?"

The young black officer pointed. "The guy over there but you're not allowed to be in here," he tried just as the other one had and put a hand on Jarod's shoulder to get him back behind the confined space of the crime scene.

"Look, it's my son who's missing so get out of my way." Jarod didn't give him another glance but strode over to where the man that the officer had pointed out was standing. "What do you have?" he asked briskly.

The man turned. "And you are?"

"Jarod Stuart. My son is missing."

"Ah, yes. Mister Stuart. I'm special-agent Jack Malone, FBI, missing persons unit," the man extended his hand.

Jarod shook it firmly and very briefly. "So what happened here?" he asked, his face a hard and unwavering mask. Only those who knew Jarod would be able to see the fear and nervousness in the tightly controlled man's eyes.

"We don't have much information right now. It seems as if your son Jay was just walking towards the school grounds with a friend when a black car speed up and stopped in front of the teenagers. A man got out, grabbed your son and pulled him into the car and that was it. The school called the police and they called us."

"Who was with Jay?" Jarod asked, looking around.

"A boy named Tony Gray," special-agent Malone responded after looking it up in his notepad. "One of my agents is just speaking to him and trying to get some more information. The boy's pretty shocked."

Jarod nodded and was about to pose another question when he heard a short yell of pure rage. He didn't need to turn around to know who was approaching. He swivelled around and strode over to where Parker was just pushing past a policeman, a pair of officers following her. Andy was balanced on her right hip as if glued there.

Jarod quickly embraced her. "Are you ok?"

"Yes," she replied and then they both drew away and straightened, pushing back the fear and pain that was inhabiting them, to go on and function to get Jay back. "What exactly happened and why's the place crawling with policemen?" she asked in a hushed voice.

Even though the words were spoken in no more than whispered tones, the two officers who had brought Parker there caught them. The female officer's eyebrows rose high on her forehead; the man's eyes narrowed.

Jarod took Parker by the arm and lead her forward. "I'm just trying to find out what happened. It seems as if the school called the police, which is more than understandable from their point of view."

"Damn," she swore, adjusting Andy on her hip.

"You can say that," Jarod growled back and gently drew a hand through his son's hair, ruffling it.

Both police officers that were following the couple had managed to overhear bits and pieces of the conversation. They both frowned and looked at each other.

And another man had a suspicious frown on his forehead. He walked over to where his boss stood.

"Danny," Agent Malone greeted him.

"I just overheard the parents of the boy talking."

"And?"

"They don't seem to be pleased with our and the police's being here," the Latino informed his boss.

"Is that so?" Malone questioned, interest colouring his voice. One eyebrow rose and he turned to where the parents were standing, watching them closely.

Danny nodded.

"Ok, you know the drill: Find out _who_ the boy is and we most certainly find out _where_ he is. Martin's speaking to the boy who was present during the abduction. Try to get some answers from the parents. I don't think that Martin will be able to get much out of that friend or any of the boy's mates," Malone ordered.

Danny nodded and turned while the other agent drew out his cell and dialled a pre-programmed number. "Viv, it's me. You have anything yet?"

"No, not much," papers ruffled in the background. "Jay Stuart, sixteen. The family just moved to New York about half a year ago. They're not extraordinarily wealthy and the parents don't claim any important positions in their working life. The boy has been going to high school from the time they came here. His grades are barely above average and he didn't attract any attention on himself otherwise. No police or hospital records as far as I could find out until now," the woman passed the information onto him.

"Keep digging. We need to know more about the time before. If the family's not extraordinary wealthy, the abduction's gotta have something to do with the family's past. Oh and let Sam start searching for the parent's background. I want to know more about them as well. Danny informed me that he overheard a conversation and obviously they weren't too happy about our involvement. I want to know why."

"Got it. I'll call you once I have something useful," agent Johnson said and terminated the connection just as her boss did.

Agent Malone walked over to where Danny was talking to the parents.

x x x x x x x

Jarod took Andrew out of Parker's arms.

"What are we going to do?"

"Get him to safety with the family and you too," he answered in hushed tones.

"Forget it, I'm not leaving. Jay's as much my son as he's yours. I won't let you do this alone," she shook her head determinedly.

Jarod knew better than to argue with her about that. "Ok," he breathed, giving her a quick kiss, glad that she would be in this together with him.

She nodded briefly and leaned over to the little boy that was now in his father's arms. "Your Daddy's going to bring you away from here, little man. I love you," she whispered to him and placed a kiss on his cheek.

"Ma'am, Sir. I would like to talk to you," a man came up to them. "I'm special agent Taylor from the FBI."

"Can't that wait? I have something to take care of," Jarod said and already turned around, taking the boy with him.

"Sorry, sir, but it's important. It's about your son," Agent Malone's voice spoke up behind them.

Jarod rolled his eyes. Anything else - if it had not been about Jay - would have been strange. "My wife will gladly keep you company until I'm back."

"Where are you going?" special-agent Malone asked.

"That's none of your business," Jarod stated evenly and walked towards his car.

"Sir, we got the impression that you're not entirely comfortable with our being here," Agent Taylor spoke up. He tilted his head to the side.

Jarod swivelled round and glared at the agents. "You're damn right I'm not."

"But we're here to help you get your son back," Danny quirked an eyebrow, quickly filing away the information he got through this interview.

Jarod scoffed.

"Did you already get a ransom demand?" Agent Malone asked carefully, watching the man. "Is that where you're off to right now? I can only advise you to let us prepare the money in that case. That way you'll be able to get your son back and maybe also the money once we get the kidnappers."

"You just don't understand that. I didn't get any demands and there will be none," Jarod snapped. Parker put a hand on his arm to calm him and he shot her a look of gratitude that she was able to get him to focus again.

"How do you know that?" Malone asked, catching on the words the man had spoken.

"If you'll please excuse me now, I have some things to do," Jarod stated calmly.

"I'm not comfortable with your leaving, sir," Malone spoke up again.

"So what? Am I under arrest? I don't think so, you have no reason for that," Jarod said and then stalked away. He quickly got into the car and started the engine.

"Just what is your husband trying to accomplish, Ma'am?" Malone asked Parker when he turned to her.

"He's trying to protect his family," she said calmly, watching Jarod leave. Then she turned towards the agent and quirked an eyebrow at him.

"Danny, grab Martin and follow him," Malone ordered and turned back to the woman in front of him, while his agent was already on his way. "And I want you to accompany me, Ma'am."

Parker shrugged her shoulders and followed the agent.

"Told you that something about her was strange," the police officer said to his partner.

"Yes, Bosco," Faith gave back. They had been merely a few steps away from the scene. They were helping their colleagues to keep the watchers back from the scene.

"Oh man, her husband was even more cool and composed than she was. I don't think he cared about what happened," Bosco frowned.

"Oh, he did. The calm only went so deep. He was shaken," another officer spoke up.

"Yeah?" Bosco turned to him, clearly not convinced.

"I think Davis is right. The man was worried," another officer said.

"Aw, come on, Sully. He was cool as ice. Did you see how he just brushed off the worry? He was composed as if that wasn't his problem at all," Bosco shook his head.

"I think it's more like he was worried but not able to show it. He was fighting to stay in control," Davis cautioned.

"In control? Of what?" Bosco asked, gesturing with his hands.

"Hell, how should I know?" Davis shrugged.

"Ha," Bosco scoffed. "Control. That guy has long since lost control. Over what is anyone's guess at the moment," he waved his hand.

To be continued…

I think some of you know what other crossover series appeared here. For those who don't:

It's "Without A Trace".

Again - though I've said it before - the "Third Watch"-team's appearance will end here. Instead, the crossover will focus on "Without A Trace". I hope you like the way I'm doing this. Please leave me a note if you do (and if you don't as well).

Oh, and: I was asked to do a short summary of the new crossover series, so you know what's going on and who's who. I snatched bits and pieces of it from other sources (without permission - sorry), rewrote some and put my own comments in. So, to up it in a nutshell, this is what Without A Trace is about:

**Without A Trace **is a series focussed on the Missing Persons Squad of the FBI. The series takes place in (surprise, surprise) New York. The sole responsibility of the special task force is to find people who have gone missing. They are trying to peel back the layers of the victims' lives and trace their whereabouts in an effort to discover whether they have been abducted, murdered, committed suicide or simply run away.  
The team consists of five members:  
Senior agent **Jack Malone** (Anthony LaPaglia) is the head of the team. He's a pretty somber and grumpy guy most of the time, has a degree in psychology and is always trying to stay keep all bases covered in the investigation.  
**Vivian Johnson** (Marianne Jean-Baptiste); she's kind of a peacekeeper in the team, also a bit of a mother-hen sometimes. Yet, she's a no-nonsense investigator and has a lot of experience on the job.  
**Samantha Spade** (Poppy Montgomery); she's good looking but tough and she's also proving that she has the job because she's good in it.  
**Danny Taylor** (Enrique Murciano); street-smart Latino, who always has a witty comment on his tongue. He's often trusting his instincts and having a good insight into the people he's dealing with. He's also a very private guy and doesn't reveal much about himself.  
**Martin Fitzgerald** (Eric Close); he's introduced to the team with the first episode of "Without A Trace". He got his assignment partly because of his father, who's a deputy Director in the FBI, but proved his right to being with the team over time.

This is kept very basic but I think it should do… at least I hope so.


	4. Safety for some

Disclaimer: see part one

Author's Note: The next chapter will probably come up in a bit over a week. I'll be on holiday from mid-next week. I'll have internet access every now and then but nothing regular so I won't promise anything definite.

Thanks to:

Pez: Glad you think the description was ok. Thanks for telling me. Go on and read chapter four now.

Carestel:is happy: Glad you like it. Thanks for your review and now enjoy chapter four.

Gemini-M: Oh, the FBI is definitely getting suspicious. About Jarod's interpretation: it's not that easy to get a balance of "in control" and "badly affected by what's happening". I'll try to keep what you said in mind. Thanks for those critical words. Read on and enjoy now.

bloodymary2: Good to hear that the summary/characterisation helped you. I'm glad you like the pace and direction this is taking. Thanks for telling me so. Now I won't keep you from reading further any longer. Enjoy!

phi4858: Yeah, you're right. Finding a missing person doesn't always end successfully for the „Without A Trace"-team. We'll see which side were landing on this time but have a little bit of faith. To answer your other questions… you better read on and find out ;) Thanks for your review and now enjoy chapter 4.

imag1ne: Wow, thanks for those compliments. :sighs: I'm glad to hear you think everyone in character and that the choice of "Without A Trace" is such a good fit. Looking forward to MP's interview… :snickers: yeah, me too. Thanks for your review and now move on and enjoy!

Missedythe: Aha, another "Without A Trace"-friend out there. Thanks for that big compliment. It's always great to hear the characters are portrayed correctly and some of the shows spirit is coming through. Glad you like it so far. Hope it'll continue to be to your liking. Read on and have fun with chapter 4 now.

x x x x x x x

The Past Always Catches Up Part 4

_Safety for some_

Jarod looked into the rear-view mirror and narrowed his eyes. Then he shot a look to his son who was quietly sitting on the passenger's seat a look.

He reached into his breast pocket and got his cell phone out.

"Charles," his father answered after the first ring.

"It's me," he responded equally short and tense.

"Jarod. Where are you?"

He took another look in the rear-view mirror. "On my way to the airport. Look, I have two agents on my heels so we won't have any time for discussion on the runway."

"Jarod!" the Major's voice came up. "They're back, aren't they?" It was more of a statement than a question and he didn't have to ask who 'they' were.

"Yes, and they have Jay."

"Oh no," his father gasped.

"Look, Dad. I really don't have time for this," Jarod spoke sharply to get his father back to focus.

"What about those agents?"

Jarod took another look. "They're harmless but I don't want them to interfere. I want you to take Ethan, Emily, Andy and vanish."

The Major breathed loudly, communicating his dislike.

"I won't debate this. I need you out of harms way. I need to know that you and the rest of my family is safe so that I can concentrate on saving Jay," Jarod replied tensely.

"Ok," his father relented, knowing that Jarod was right.

"Thanks Dad," Jarod sighed, grateful that his father was backing off. "I'm only a few minutes away from the airstrip. Get our jet ready for take-off so that you just have to close the door after taking Andy. These agents won't be pleased but I can't have them getting in the way so I need you to be in the air before their car comes to a halt."

"Ok," the Major said again.

"Go somewhere safe. Maybe Canada," he shook his head. "I don't care as long as you're safe. I just can't worry about all of you as well."

"Ok, ok, Jarod."

"Good. Oh, and Dad?"

"Yes?" his father asked carefully, already anticipating that he wouldn't like the next thing his son would say.

"Don't - I repeat - don't call me or Parker," Jarod said in a no nonsense voice.

"Jarod," the Major tried to interrupt.

"No," Jarod shook his head. "I don't know how long this cell phone will exist. I don't want it to fall into the Centre's hands and them to get to you by following the signal when they call one of your numbers. And because of that I don't want you to call me," Jarod said sternly. "I'll contact you once this is over and I'm back in the position to call, got that?"

The Major huffed frustrated. "Yes."

"Good," Jarod said. "I gotta go now. I'll see you in just a few minutes. Be ready to leave at once," he ordered and terminated the connection.

He put the cell phone back into his pocket and then looked over to his son. "Hey, kiddo," he mumbled, his voice suddenly thick with emotions.

The child looked up at his father. He had been silent since the turmoil had started, not uttering more than a few words, as if he knew that his parents needed to focus on other things. He was frightened yet his confidence in his parents never wavered. "Jay's gone," he mumbled.

Jarod nodded, tears welling up in his eyes. "Yes he is, but Mommy and I will do everything we can to get him back," he vowed, as much to himself as to his son.

"Won't see you for some time."

Jarod drew a deep breath. "Yes, that might be so but I want you to know that Mommy and I love you very much and that we'll come back to you and the rest of the family the moment we can, ok?"

Andy nodded earnestly.

"Ok," Jarod reassured himself again. "I want you to go with your Grandpa and Aunt Em and Uncle Ethan. They'll take care of you for as long as Mommy and I can't."

The little head bobbed up and down again.

Jarod checked the rear-view mirror again and nodded his head in satisfaction when he saw that the agent's car was a sufficient distance away.

He accelerated just a bit more and turned onto the airport's zone. He had made the travel from city centre to the small strip that lay in the south of the city in a good time.

He applied the breaks when he came alongside the jet that belonged to his family. They had bought it sometime ago so that they would be able to get away from the city in a short time and get lost in the endless sky among hundreds of other planes.

The jet was already parked with the engine running in front of the runway, only waiting for him to deliver the valuable cargo. Jarod grabbed his son from the passenger's seat and was out of the car in a flash. He sprinted the last few steps over to the waiting plane.

Emily's head appeared in the doorway and she stretched out her arms, waiting for Jarod to place his son in them. Her face was blank with fright and shock.

Jarod looked at her and, for a fleeting moment, the mask he had put on slipped. His face was mirroring that of his sister, containing fright, pain, shock and concern. The heavy weights of responsibility pushed on his shoulders, making him want to collapse to the ground and weep. The moment was over before it really begun. The features of the controlled and focussed man snapped back in place when he heard two men shouting behind him.

"I love you, my boy," he whispered into Andy's hair. He pushed his son in Emily's waiting arms and helped her to close the door. Once it was shut, he sprang away from the jet as his father manoeuvred it onto the runway and roughly accelerated the plane so that it raced down the airstrip.

He couldn't hear anything over the noise of the plane but knew two sets of footsteps were coming towards him.

Here he was again: a different airport, but a familiar situation. The last time he had forced his father to leave with the boy while he stayed behind to rescue Miss Parker. This time he was entrusting his father with the safety of his family, while once again he would stay behind with Miss Parker, but this time to rescue the boy.

Jarod's eyes followed the plane and he raised a hand in a last farewell, his face softening once again. "Be safe," he whispered, knowing that no one could hear the words but praying that someone would and therefore keep an eye on his family.

The two agents skidded to a halt next to him when the jet was about to leave the ground.

"Damn it," agent Fitzgerald swore loudly and turned Jarod round by roughly shoving him in the shoulder. "Just what the hell are you doing?" he screamed.

Jarod looked at him with a hard glance, all softness gone and replaced with the hard and controlled features. "Protecting my family," he said evenly and the turned around to walk back to the car.

Danny and Martin exchanged a look and then they quickly stepped in front of Jarod.

"Sir, we want you to accompany us now," Danny said, anger brooding in him but he was trying to keep it under control.

"I'm on my way back to the high school. If it will make you feel better, one of you can drive with me," Jarod said evenly, his eyes hard and emotionless.

Danny's eyes narrowed. "Martin, you go with him, I follow in our car."

Martin nodded and looked expectantly at Jarod who shrugged and gestured to his car.

He knew that they were expecting some explanations but he wasn't about to offer any or justify his actions. He didn't mind their probing now just as long as he knew that the rest of his family was safe. He knew that he didn't have to worry about them any longer. Once they had been in the air that burden had dropped.

His father had enough experience with the Centre to keep them safe. They wouldn't be found now.

His father would accomplish what Jarod had asked him to do: vanish.

To be continued…


	5. Calculations

Disclaimer: see part one

Thanks to:

Nyt: Glad you like the idea and the way it moves at the moment. Yes, there are interesting times ahead; for everyone. Thanks for reviewing and now enjoy the next chapter.

Gemini-M: Aha, seems like I got the characterisation better now. Thanks for telling me so. Have fun with the next chapter now.

imag1ne: loll. Yeah, that would definitely be interesting but sorry, Jarod pulling out an FBI badge is not what I have in store for the story. Wait and see where I'll guide you. Glad you also liked the scene between Jarod and Andy. Thanks for reviewing and now enjoy chapter 5.

MissEdythe: wow, what a compliment :faints: Yeah, the FBI is very suspicious of them. Too many questions rank around Jarod and Parker. Well, read on now and enjoy.

xx x x x x x

The Past Always Catches Up Part 5

_Calculations_

The drive was spent mostly in silence on Jarod's part. Agent Fitzgerald tried to get him to talk and explain his motives, but Jarod replied with barely more than a grunt.

His mind was focussed on different things. He only partially gave attention to what the young agent was saying. He was pondering how he would be able to get Jay out of the Centre. Before that, he would have to get rid of those FBI agents.

Other people might be glad they were there, helping them getting their loved-ones back, but in this case they couldn't help. They had no idea what was happening here and therefore they wouldn't be able to do any good.

No, this was something that he would have to do alone, merely supported by his childhood friend and partner.

He looked at his watch.

"Time's a critical factor," agent Fitzgerald was just saying next to him.

'How right he is with just that statement. Time was always essential when it concerned the Centre,' Jarod thought darkly. He calculated that they would have eighteen hours before the Centre would get close to breaking Jay.

Maybe more; depending on how much strength the boy had in him.

Jay was strong, healthy and he possessed the same inborn stamina that flowed through Jarod's body, but unlike Jarod's, the young man's endurance hadn't been tested anywhere near its limits.

What had Jarod worried most – above the physical pain they would force on the boy - were the drugs they would use to make Jay crack into pieces - especially the ones that were thought up, mixed and fabricated by Raines.

He still didn't know why the Centre had never used those drugs on him either before his escape or during his recapture.

Those drugs would have cracked him. He was more or less immune to brainwashing, but combined with drugs, he wouldn't have been able to keep fighting them.

He could only guess they had never used them because either Sydney had been able to prevent it before his escape or because after his capture Raines hadn't been there to use them. Either Lyle hadn't known about their existence, or he had been too proud and too convinced his treatment would work to use them.

Jarod shook his head to force the dark thoughts from his mind and concentrate back on the calculations.

Jay wouldn't give in easily. He had grown and experienced life outside of the Centre. His will was strong and he wouldn't let them take his freedom and his experiences away from him without a fight.

Jarod was in the unique position of knowing exactly what Jay would be able to take. The only valuable in his calculation - and sadly that one was the most important - was how long Jay would be able to take it when they pumped him full of drugs.

He guessed that Jay would be able to hold on longer than he anticipated, but he needed to cut the time frame short to calculate with the worst possibilities.

Eighteen hours.

Even with the worst of Raines' drugs, he was certain that Jay would hold up that long.

Jarod nodded thoughtfully and then realized that the agent next to him had stopped talking. He looked over at him and found the man staring at him. Jarod didn't comment but concentrated back on the road, his thoughts drifting off once more.

Drifting to where he didn't want them to drift.

Just as he was in the unique position of knowing exactly how much Jay would be able to take, he knew just as well what the boy would be subjected to and what they would force upon him to break the soul of his younger self.

Jarod shuddered, something that didn't escape the agent's watchful eyes.

Minutes later, they arrived back at the place where everything had started. The pavement in front of the high school was still crawling with uniformed and plain clothed policemen, FBI agents and crime scene investigators.

Jarod looked around with a schooled eye and tried to make out Parker's features. Once his eyes fell on her, he strode towards where she was standing next to the FBI agent.

Martin Fitzgerald observed Jarod and quirked an eyebrow at the efficiency with which the man was scanning the area. It was a quick and subtle glance that quickly scanned over the crowd for information or threat; it was the glance of the hunted.

The agent frowned. There was something about this guy - hell no - there was something about this whole case that made him wonder.

Both parent's behaviours, the coolness and concentration they showed despite the awful situation they were in, their resistance about working together with the authorities, the man's stunt at the airport. He had worked on enough cases to know that everyone reacted differently to an awful event like abduction but this was somewhat new. He shook his head. Something just didn't fit here.

The man was far from being as emotionless and uncaring as he had first thought. It was more like he fought to keep in control of his feelings so that he would be able to react in a split second. That much he had seen during the ride back from the airport.

Shaking out of his silent musings, he followed the man to where his boss was standing. Danny fell in stride next to him.

"What did he say?"

"Barely more than a few grunts," Martin replied.

"I don't understand this guy," Danny shook his head. "He's strange."

"Yes, he's strange," Martin agreed, "but I think that there's more to his behaviour than he leads on. This whole case smells fishy."

His partner turned towards him. "That's nothing new," Danny gave back, shrugging.

"No, I mean it, Danny. I think there's a lot more going on here than we're able to grasp," Martin cautioned.

Danny grabbed his arm, making Martin stop and turn towards his partner. "What do you mean?"

"The way he behaved on his way back here, completely lost to the world, as if he was trying to figure something out - calculating something. Hell, even the stunt at the airport in the first place. You ever came across a parent who did something like that after one of his children had been abducted?" Martin asked the Latino.

His partner had a point there. Danny had already wondered himself. He had been longer with the FBI's Missing Persons Unit than Martin had but the father's behaviour was nothing he had ever encountered. They started walking again. "And what do you suggest we do?"

"Hey, normally you are the people person," Martin grinned at him and Danny smirked back. "I think we should wait, listen and try to get a better feeling for the parents," Martin replied just before they arrived next to their boss and the two parents. They came just in time to hear their boss talking angrily to them. "What in the hell did you do at the airport?"

Martin looked questioningly at Danny. "I already informed him," Danny shrugged and Martin nodded.

"Just as I told your agents there," Jarod's eyes briefly darted towards the agents and then back to Malone, "I'm protecting my family."

"And forgetting about your other son?" Danny asked from behind, trying to get underneath the man's skin.

Jarod swivelled round, anger flashing in his eyes. "I'm not forgetting about him," he snarled. "I just need the rest of my family safe when I go for him."

Danny was a bit taken aback by the explosive reaction. But just as quickly as the spark of life had come into Jarod's eyes, it vanished, only to be replaced again by the eerie calm, covering each and every reaction and feeling.

While Danny was still recovering from the surprise, Martin was adding these new facts about the man that was still a mystery to him to memory. Jack Malone's eyes narrowed at the words the man had spoken.

"Whoa, no one's going after anyone here," he held up his hands.

Jarod's head snapped around to the top agent once more. Only Parker's hand on his chest stopped him from another explosion. He nodded calmly, trying to convince the team of agents that he meant what he was gesturing.

A cell phone started ringing and Malone quickly got the device out of his pocket and opened it. "Malone," he announced and then listened to agent Johnson's information. He turned around so that he stood with his back to the little group.

"Jack, this is really strange. The family appeared in the city about half a year ago but before that, there's nothing. It's as if they didn't even exist. There's no information about them anywhere," the female agent told him.

Malone frowned. "Keep digging, Viv. We need more information and I intend to get it," he snapped the cell phone shut.

Parker and Jarod had used the short interruption to amble away from the agents, even though they knew that at least the two young agents were paying attention to their every move.

"Did everything go smoothly? They're in the air?" she asked softly. Jarod hadn't had the time to fill her into the plan how to get Andy and the family out of there but it didn't need a clairvoyant to know what he had been planning.

"Yes, they are. Our two agents over there came just moments too late," Jarod grinned briefly.

"How long do we have?" she asked, knowing that she didn't need to say anything more for Jarod to understand what she meant.

He shook his head and sighed. "That's the problem. I can't name an exact point of time. I would guess that he will be able to hold up at least eighteen hours until Raines and Co. will be able to break through. After that time, I don't know if he'll be able to hang on. That depends on him and on what kind of drugs they have at their disposal," he shrugged his shoulders helplessly. "Maybe after that point of time they'll have him in a state where they can break him for real or brainwash him. I don't know."

"He's a fighter. He'll make it," she reassured him and took him in her arms for a brief moment. Jarod relaxed in her arms for a heartbeat. Only seconds later, they both parted at the same time, knowing that now was not the time for lengthy reassurance and caress.

They had a son to rescue.

The gentle show of emotion wasn't lost on both Danny and Martin but they looked up at their boss when he scoffed and then walked up to them.

"I want those two in the bureau," he told them shortly.

Martin and Danny both raised and eyebrow but then the trio walked over to Parker and Jarod, asking them to accompany them to the headquarters.

Jarod had a hard time fighting the panic at the loss of time. He was keeping a firm grasp on his emotions just as Parker was.

Still, they both complied with the agent's wishes with clenched teeth.

To be continued…


	6. Phoning for help

Disclaimer: see part one

Thanks to:

bloodymary2: I'm glad to hear that you like the story as I'm writing it and the way I'm portraying the charcaters. Oh and, yeah, you did mention that you're a sucker for JMPR :lol: Thanks for reviewing and now enjoy the next chapter.

Gemini-M: Legal procedures can be a bitch, especially now that time is running against Jarod and Parker. I, too, hope that Jay will be able to hold on. We'll see if Angelo might help. Thanks for your feedback and now read on and enjoy.

Carestel: As you see I've been on holiday as well, so no worries about the late review. How Jarod will manage to get rid of the agents… we'll have to see if he manages it at all. Thanks for your reviews and now enjoy chapter 6.

phi4858: Glad to see you're still very much with me. So many questions… I'll answer them; you just have to hang on and ride along. Thanks for your review and now enjoy the new chapter.

MissEdythe: Wow, seems like I've got you hooked pretty badly :clapps hands excitedly: Glad you found the hug was appropriate. There will be some more of those short moments but I won't push the romance-card for I feel that it wouldn't be believable in the situation they are in. Anyway, read on now and enjoy the chapter 6.

x x x x x x x

The Past Always Catches Up Part 6

_Phoning for help_

Walking towards the agents' car, a thought shot through Jarod's mind, making him stop directly in front of the vehicle. "I have to make a phone call first," Jarod announced and made a step backwards.

"You don't need to call your attorney. You're not under arrest, at least not yet," Malone replied calmly, making eye contact.

"I don't want to call my attorney. I don't need to because I haven't done anything," in his thoughts Jarod added a 'yet' to the sentence but he didn't say it aloud.

Malone looked at him doubtfully, contemplating if he should try to hinder the man in making the call.

"You said it yourself: we're not under arrest," Jarod pointed out and then stepped away from the group. He wasn't hindered in getting his cell phone out. He stepped further away from the group, making sure they wouldn't overhear his conversation. Dialling a number he hadn't called in over a year, he waited with his back on the group, shooting them wary glances over his shoulder every few seconds.

Before the call was picked up, he made eye contact with Parker. She was frowning, not knowing what he was trying to do. Then the call was answered and he turned his back on the group of people and concentrated on the conversation.

"This is Sydney," his old mentor answered. The familiarity of the words installed a strange kind of reassurance in Jarod.

"Where is he?"

"Jarod?" Sydney breathed, surprised that his former protégé would call after such a long silence.

"Where is he, Sydney?" Jarod repeated, his voice even harsher than before.

"Who?"

"Jay."

"Jay?" Sydney asked, confusion clear in his voice.

"Yes, Jay," Jarod confirmed in a hard voice and then remembered that the name wouldn't be familiar to Sydney. He didn't know the young man under that name. "Gemini."

"I don't know, Jarod."

Jarod started pacing, his eyes cast downward on the ground. "Come on, Sydney. Where is he?"

"I really don't know but I'll try to find out," Sydney replied.

Jarod kept silent for a few moments, trying to swallow the anger that welled up in him again.

"What happened?" Sydney asked when Jarod didn't say anything.

"The Centre happened," Jarod snapped. He rubbed a hand over his eyes.

"I'll see what I can do for you, Jarod."

Jarod nodded. "I call you again in two hours," he was about to terminate the connection when he heard Sydney's voice.

"No, Jarod."

"What?" Jarod asked, bringing the phone back to his ear.

"Give me your number. I'll call you the moment I have anything. There's no need to wait for your call. If I get anything earlier then I'll call you, but it might take me longer than two hours."

Jarod contemplated his mentor's remark and then he nodded. "Ok. I'll give you the number. But, Sydney, know this: the number won't exist for more than," he paused and looked at his watch. 'Damn, already more than four hours since this started', he thought. "More than eight hours, tops. After that, I won't be able to pick up your call."

"What are you up to?" Sydney asked worriedly.

"At the moment nothing, but I won't take the cell with me once I'm near the Centre. It's too dangerous. Should they get their hands on it, the rest of my family is in danger," he said shortly.

"Ok, give me the number."

After giving Sydney the number and terminating the connection, Jarod put his cell away and walked back to the group of people waiting for him. He ignored the curious glances and merely took his place next to Parker. "We should leave."

And with that the group started their travel to the headquarters of the FBI.

The agents didn't try to get anything out of the parents during the travel. They needed to know what Vivian and Sam had found out before they could start with detailed questionings.

As for Jarod and Parker, they were quite fine with the silence that enveloped the group in the car. They were quietly contemplating possible ways out of this mess.

Jarod was already running simulations about possible scenarios to get Jay out of the Centre but he would need to know where they were keeping him for that.

This FBI investigation was just what he didn't need at the moment. It was stealing valuable time from them; time that would be needed for a well planned operation that stood a chance of succeeding. If they didn't move soon he would have to hurry to get to the Centre and then walk in there unprepared; not knowing what was awaiting him.

He could only hope that Sydney would find out where Jay was being held or, if not, that Angelo would meet up with him sometime during the crawl through the Centre's vents and guide him. Otherwise he would stand no better a chance of succeeding than an ice crystal surviving the fires of hell.

Jarod trembled and he felt Parker's hand come to rest on his thigh. He looked up briefly, his eyes full of emotion for a split second.

Parker cupped his hand in hers and their fingers entwined instantly. Both could feel the other's pain.

Jarod wanted nothing more than get Jay out of the Centre's grasp, but that was exactly what wasn't possible due to the FBI investigation.

Somehow it was ironic. These people wanted to help. It was their job to find missing people, to help liberate abducted people, but in this case they were only making things worse and putting Jay in worse danger than he was without them.

Hopefully they would hurry so Parker and he would have the chance to save Jay before it was too late.

To be continued…


	7. Inscrutable past and dark future

Disclaimer: see part one

Thanks to:

Gemini-M: Well, we'll see if they're able to shake the FBI off of their heels and we'll also see about Angelo and Sydney helping. Glad you like. Thanks for your review and now enjoy chapter 7.

MissEdythe: Good to hear that you can follow this story even though you haven't read the first two parts. _Hopefully in doing their jobs the FBI won't be inadvertently working against them_. Yeah, that's exactly what Jarod and Parker fear will happen. Anyway, now read on and enjoy the next chapter.

imag1ne:blushestutterthankyou: Glad you like. Thanks for telling me so and now move on to the next chapter (oh and, seeing you and I both don't hate 'our' Gemini, the two of them have to go through quite a lot in our stories, don't they?)

XxX-PhoenixGirl-XxX: No worries. Glad you're still with me and enjoying the story. Thanks for your review and now read the new chapter.

Carestel: Heya, seems as if you're enjoying the ride. Yeah, I had this idea about the phone call and just had to put it into the chapter. Can't have Sydney and Co. completely out of the loop. Thanks for reviewing. Enjoy chapter 7 now.

Nans: Yeah, Syd might be able to help. He's been working (more or less) for the Centre for a long time and he knows where the skeletons are. We'll see how much of a help he'll be. Thanks for your review and now read on and enjoy!

x x x x x x x

The Past Always Catches Up Part 7

_Inscrutable past and dark future_

He woke up feeling disoriented and shattered.

He was lying on a tiny cot in the corner of what looked like a small concrete room.

"Great," he muttered under his breath and attempted to sit up. He could do so with difficulty but didn't get far because his right wrist was restrained and the chain was connected to a metal ring that was bolted into the concrete wall.

"Even better," he growled and yanked half-heartedly at the chain. He knew it wouldn't give way - the motion came unconsciously.

He looked around to see if there was anything he could use to break free but found nothing.

Scooting over so that his back was pressed to the wall, Jay drew up his feet onto the cot and put his hands on his knees.

It seemed as if he would have to wait and see about getting out of here.

It took a while for desperation to set in.

No one came into the cell, something he knew he should be grateful for because every passing minute during which he was alone would be a minute without pain. Something he doubted would last forever.

Yet he got more and more agitated even though he deliberately tried to calm himself down.

He wondered what was different about this situation from the past. It wasn't like he hadn't been imprisoned in the Centre in the past. On the contrary, he had spent the first thirteen or fourteen years of his life inside of Donoterase.

Then he realized just how different this was. In the past those in charge didn't have to doubt his loyalty. He had been a conditioned lab rat that would do as they asked without question.

But those conditions had changed.

He had lived in the outside world for three years now and his loyalties had shifted. He didn't stand on the Centre's side any longer.

And that was exactly what had changed. The sides he was on.

The Centre would try everything get back to what they had before Jarod had liberated him. They would try everything and stop at nothing to get him under their control once again.

Jay closed his eyes.

This was not good. He would have to be prepared for what they would throw at him. And that was what scared him.

From long talks with Jarod, where his father had told him some of what had happened to him, Jay knew more or less exactly what he would have to face and the thought made him shudder.

He would have to face the Centre's wrath and he would have to fight against everything they subjected upon him to keep his life, the life he had built for himself with his parents and brother and the rest of their family in the outside world.

Once he let his grasp on that slip, he knew the Centre would be there to use it - to use him and to turn him into a lab rat again.

He wouldn't be allowed to keep his memories; they would wipe the memories from his mind as if they had never happened; memories of the outside world, of his experiences and his family; of Major Charles, Ethan, Emily and Andy... and most importantly of his Mom and Dad.

Jarod.

He breathed deeply. He would have to hang on. His father would find a way to get him out of here. He would just have to survive until he could come for him.

Jay clenched his teeth and tried to block out the dark thoughts of what was to come.

Suddenly a wave of anger washed over him. He growled in frustration. The growl soon turned into a scream of rage mingled with fear and he jumped up and started kicking at nothing in particular.

The only result it brought was that his voice and the fear it held was thrown back at him from the walls, multiplying on the way and making the whole situation even more unbearable.

Jay yanked on the restraints on his wrist in rage, rattling the chain against the cot. He was throwing nearly all his weight against the restraints, making them cut into the tender flesh of his wrists, furiously venting on them a surge of raw, unmanageable despair.

He stopped short when the realization of what he was doing hit him.

That wouldn't do.

If he kept on going that way, he would crack into pieces even before the Centre had started to do anything. He would only play into their hands.

Taking a deliberate and deep breath, he sat back down on the cot and just concentrated on calming down. He would need all the strength he had in him to get out of this situation with his mind intact.

Jay leaned his back against the wall and closed his eyes.

The breath caught in his chest when the electronic lock clicked and the door opened, allowing his captors to enter the room.

Jarod and Parker were brought to the two interrogation rooms, consciously being separated from each other once the group arrived at the FBI headquarters.

"Jack, don't you think that singling them out is a bit cruel?" Martin asked carefully once the whole group was gathered around the conference table.

"I know they're distressed but I want some answers and if we don't get them, I fear the boy won't have a chance of being safely returned to his family," Malone replied, turning away from the board with the timeline and focussing his attention on his team. "Ok, from scratch. Viv, Sam, what do you have?"

"Ok, first about the boy," Vivian Johnson started and the team turned towards her. "He's sixteen and as I told you before he never drew any attention on him. His grades are good but not extraordinary; they are just a bit above average. There are no records about him with the police or anything like that. He's a decent young man."

"That's what his friends and teachers said as well," Martin spoke up and everyone's attention turned towards him. "They say he quickly made friends once they came into the city. He's well accepted and liked by the rest of his class. No one knows anything about enemies or something like that but no one seems to know an awful lot about him at the same time. It seems as if he didn't talk much about his life before they came to New York. A girl said that he had once told her that he had been travelling a lot, mostly together with his father but that was that."

"He went out with friends of his yesterday; had some ice cream with them after school around five o'clock at the parlour in their neighbourhood," Vivian pointed at the timeline.

"Story confirmed by the waitress in the parlour. They go there relatively often," Danny took over. "Waitress said they stayed for a little more than an hour yesterday. Nothing unusual."

"His friends said the same thing. He wasn't behaving any differently from usual. No sudden mood swings or anything," Martin went on. "They separated around six thirty. Do we have anything else that might indicate he was in trouble? Emails, phone calls, letters,…?"

"The mother didn't say anything about letters," Malone said. "We won't get a warrant for the computer and with the parents, I somehow doubt that they'll allow us to go through his emails. Not after we dragged them here. What did you find out about the parents, Sam?"

"Now that's where it all gets more complicated and strange. The records go back to their appearance in the city. They bought a little house and were what one would call 'decent citizens'. The father, Jarod Stuart, has a job in the medical research industry and the mother, Melina Stuart is working part time with an attorney. So far so good but once I tried to find out where they lived and worked before, I came up with nothing. It's as if they didn't exist. They came out of nowhere, just appeared in New York one day. There's no record from before about either of them. No social number, IDs, driving license, birth document or even documents of marriage," the blonde agent shook her head in frustration.

"Legal name change?" Danny suggested.

"Checked that… nothing," Sam shook her head.

The whole team was silent for a few seconds, trying to organise their thoughts.

"They're afraid of something. We should keep that in mind. Maybe they're in hiding or in the witness protection program," Martin cautioned.

There were several more or less convinced nods.

"It's not possible to just not exist," Malone spoke up. "There have to be records about them somewhere. We just have to find them. Martin, Sam, you go looking into the witness protection idea. We should also combine that with a picture search. Maybe we'll come up with something about our mysterious parents that way. Meanwhile I want you to question the woman, Viv. And Danny, you're with me," he ordered and everyone nodded and got to work.

To be continued…

So far, so good. You like?


	8. Digging for a treasure

Disclaimer: see part one

Thanks to:

XxX-PhoenixGirl-XxX: Here's the update. Thanks for your review. Enjoy reading.

Carestel: Oh, it will get interesting indeed. Jay – yeah, poor guy, he'll have to suffer some more. Thanks for your review and now enjoy chapter 8.

Gemini-M: I'm glad Jay came across for you; we'll see if he might be able to free himself or if Parker and Jarod can untangle themselves and get to Jay. Hang on and find out. Thank you for the feedback and now enjoy the new chapter.

MissEdythe: yay :wideeyes: I'm glad you like it so much and can feel the vibe through the computer screen. That's huge compliment. Thank you so much! Here's the update for you now. Enjoy!

imag1ne: Yeah, I guess it really is good that we both like the boy. I don't really wanna think about what he might have to fcae if we didn't like him. Still, he's got quite some suffering coming… and I might put a dent in his resilience. But I'm getting ahead of myself here. We'll see when we get there. Thanks for your feedback and now enjoy chapter 8.

x x x x x x x

The Past Always Catches Up Part 8

_Digging for a treasure_

Parker looked up calmly when the door opened and a woman came in.

"My name's Vivian Johnson," the agent introduced herself. The black woman's hair was pulled back into a ponytail and her eyes were watching Parker intently, taking in her appearance.

"You know my name so I don't see the point in telling you again," Parker snapped angrily.

The agent quirked an eyebrow but got no reaction out of the brunette on the other side of the table. "Ok Mrs," she paused for a second, "Stuart, there's something I just don't get about this."

Parker looked at her unfazed. "Shoot, maybe I'll give you an answer," she said. The old ice queen that had been nearly forgotten after she had left the Centre was back in place. She had fallen back into her old persona after she had found herself in the police station, seeing Lyle in front of it, looking at her. It was a mask necessary to survive this ordeal.

"After it was all over she could let herself feel - could deal with the emotions, but for now she pushed them down. Emotions would solve nothing and she had to concentrate on the task at hand… and hope that they would be able to rescue Jay despite the FBI's interference.

"You and your husband both don't seem to be all that fazed by what's happening," agent Johnson said, putting a file onto the desk and sitting down opposite Miss Parker.

"Listen, and listen closely, agent," Miss Parker spat, meeting the agent's gaze with cold eyes. She would have drawn her gun by now or be at the black woman's throat, but physically threatening a federal agent would probably worsen the situation. "You don't know my husband or I so don't you even try to judge us."

"I wouldn't try to judge you; I'm just saying that your behaviour is quite unusual. How about you cue me in on what you're doing?"

"No."

The simplicity of the statement - that one word, said with such conviction - astonished the agent. "We are here to help you, Mrs Stuart. We're not the enemy. Give us something to work with so that we _can_ help your family." She held the woman's gaze, hoping that she would open up to her. There was a moment in which her eyes seemed to soften. In that moment agent Johnson thought she would be told what they needed to know to get on with the investigation but then the woman's eyes grew cold again.

"No."

Simple as that.

x x x x x x x

It took Jarod all he had to keep from jumping up and pacing the room. Every single second seemed to stretch into eternity.

The door opened and the two agents appeared in the room.

He watched them approach and Malone sat down on the other side of the table while the Latino lingered around behind Jarod's back.

'Tactic to make the suspect or the one questioned nervous,' Jarod knew, but he also knew that it wouldn't work. He had been on the other end of an interview often enough to know the tactics. The nervousness he felt didn't come from them, but rather from Jay's precarious situation.

The agents watched the missing boy's father intently. To them the man seemed to be controlled and unaffected, but to those who knew him well he was edgy and tense - unfortunately those who would have known weren't present and therefore couldn't tell the agents so.

"Who are you?" Malone asked.

Jarod leaned back in his chair and clenched his jaw. "Jarod Stuart," he replied harshly.

"See that's what I don't believe," Malone caught on and tilted his head, his eyes never leaving the man.

Jarod quirked an eyebrow and shrugged. "Then don't." He knew that Malone was trying to provoke him and that they probably knew by now that Parker and he had no past in any records the agents had access to.

"There're no records about you or your wife at all. Not from before you came to New York," Malone said, confirming Jarod's suspicion. Jarod just returned the agent's stare.

"Maybe we should start this again," Agent Taylor suggested from behind, walking up to the table and seating himself on the edge of it, right next to Jarod. He leaned into the man's personal space and smirked.

"Maybe, but we wouldn't get any new results." Jarod looked up at him with a piercing glance.

"Why don't you tell us what this is about?" Danny asked.

"Because you wouldn't believe the story," Jarod responded calmly. Inwardly he was seething and being consumed by a nagging fear for his son but he forced himself to stay calm.

"Try us," Malone shrugged.

Jarod's gaze slowly wandered over to the older agent's. "I'd rather not."

"Why are you making this so difficult? This is about your son. We're here to help," Danny exploded, standing up and then bending down, invading Jarod's personal space again.

Jarod didn't look at the Latino but held Malone's gaze. "Because you can't help," he stated evenly with a clam that didn't inhabit him at that time.

"Is this about the mafia, the Yakuza or another powerful illegal organization? Are you members of the witness protection program?" Malone asked carefully.

Jarod's eyebrows hit his hairline. It was really fascinating what people would try to think up once something didn't make sense.

"Look, if your son has been kidnapped by one of these organizations, we can help you. We've dealt with similar cases and the victims were returned safely to their families. We have experience with cases like these," Malone looked at Jarod, putting all the reassurance he had in his gaze.

Jarod leaned forward. "No, Agent Malone. Believe me: you have _no_ experience at all with what's happening here."

"And you think so because--?" Danny trailed off, smirking pleasantly at the man who was still a mystery to him. None of his usual tricks had worked on him, no pushing and jabbing had brought results, neither had getting into the man's personal space bothered him. The man didn't rise to any of the baits the young agent had thrown at him.

Again, Jarod's gaze didn't waver from Malone's. "I _know_ that because there haven't been any cases like this one - at least not officially."

"But _you_ have experience?" Malone asked, still keeping eye contact.

"More than I'd like," Jarod said and leaned back in the chair, letting his fingers come to rest on his thigh. He consciously refrained from letting them drum a nervous rhythm.

Danny watched the man closely. "Why don't you fill us in so that we can help you?"

"Because you can't help," Jarod repeated his earlier words, not quite so patiently this time.

"Why not?" Malone asked neutrally.

"Because this is _way_ over your head, agent Malone. You don't know a thing about this case; what this is about," Jarod tilted his head to his side.

The door opened, interrupting the conversation and a blonde woman poked her head through. "Jack?" she asked.

Malone shot Danny a look to keep going. He then got up from his seat and left the room. He joined Sam and Martin outside.

"What is it, Sam?" he asked once the door was closed.

"We have something here. The colleagues from 'witness protection' were less than forthcoming as always but as far as we could see, there are no records about the family being in the program; we then did a picture search. At first with no results but once we combined the man's forename and his picture we came up with a mass of information. Look what we found," she handed him a stack of paper and he skipped through the first pages, a frown appearing and deepening with every page he laid eyes upon.

He suddenly turned around and watched the man through the one-way mirror.

"What's this about?" Sam asked.

"I have no idea but I hope that he'll give us a few answers," Malone answered darkly and strode back into the interrogation room.

He sat back down and looked at Jarod who returned the look, still unaffected. Malone took the sheet of paper lying on top of the pile he had brought with him.

"Jarod Gardener. **Anatomy Professor Unearths Deadly Conspiracy**," Malone read the headline.

Jarod felt the blood rush from his face and his eyes went wide.

Malone threw the file onto the table and picked up the next paper from the stack. "Jarod Dupond. **Stranger Infiltrates Haz Mat Unit - Solves Murder**," Malone went on and grabbed the next file. "Dr. Jarod Clay. **Mysterious Surgeon Uncovers Hospital Fraud**." He looked at Jarod and picked up the next file. "Oh, and that is really interesting. An internal FBI report: An agent Jarod Jackson claimed to be a hostage negotiator and helped clearing a hostage situation in Fletcher Ridge, Illinois." Malone let the file drop onto the table next to the other ones and looked directly at Jarod. "Shall I continue? Do you want the photos to the articles? There're some nice shots."

Jarod had quickly recovered from his shock and he smiled mildly. "No, that won't be necessary. I know the pictures," he leaned back in his chair and looked at Malone. "You're good. I have to give you credit for that."

"But?" Danny asked who had quietly observed the whole scene, shocked and intrigued at the same time about his boss's revelation. His mind was running overtime right now. He was reassessing what he had seen and heard before, reconnection events and facts of their investigation.

"It still won't help you - or me - with the problem we have at hand now," Jarod said calmly.

"You could give us some more information so that we can locate your son," Malone proposed.

"See, agent Malone. That's exactly what I mean. You have _no_ idea what this is about," Jarod pressed his hands flat on the table and pushed himself up forcefully, the chair's legs screeching on the floor as it was pushed backwards. He started pacing the room agitatedly. "I know exactly where my son is. The only problem I have right now is to get you off of my heels and get him out of there."

Both agents looked at him, their mouths agape, stunned at what Jarod had just told them.

"You know where your son is?" Danny asked.

Jarod sat down again but before he could reply, his cell phone started ringing in his pocket. He quickly fingered for the device but before he was able to flick it open and bring it to his ear, Malone grabbed his hand.

Jarod's head shot up and his gaze met the agent's. His eyes were flashing fire at the agent. "Let go of me," he growled darkly, pronouncing each word.

"Not now, I want some answers."

"With keeping me from taking that call, you're endangering the life of my son further so you better let go of me or I might regret my actions later."

"Who's that?" Malone asked, nodding towards the telephone in Jarod's hand.

Jarod's eyes narrowed while the phone continued ringing in his hand. He looked at the device. "Most certainly someone who can further narrow down the area where my son is," he replied tensely.

"You said you knew where he was," Danny frowned.

"I do but that place is as big as the empire state building and as guarded as Alcatraz and now, if you would 'please' let go of my hand," he all but ordered, berating the 'please' in his sentence with his tone of voice.

Malone indeed let go of the hand and Jarod quickly snatched the phone open.

"Sydney?" he asked breathlessly.

"Yes, it's me. What took you so long?" Sydney's voice came over the line.

"I have some more problems on my heels. So where is he?"

"SL-27," Sydney said.

To be continued…

Author's Note: Ugh-uh, doesn't look good now does it?

But what I wanted to say was that I didn't make up the headlines that agent Malone read out to Jarod. I copied them from an episode ("PTB's") of tP. I hope that I put the right alias Jarod used at those times to the headlines but if not, please bear with me.

I hope that you are enjoying the ride so far… you could tell me by dropping a review. Thanks!


	9. Shocking revelations

Disclaimer: see part one

Thanks to:

Gemini-M: Running out of time indeed. Let's see what way he'll take with the FBI. Thanks for your review and now enjoy chapter 9.

MissEdythe: Yeah, I can imagine that you're expectant to see if they'll get away from the FBI before they find out about the past. Read on, this chapter will hold your answers. Thanks for reviewing and now go on.

bloodymary2: wow, so glad you like it this much and now that I've managed to calm down after those compliments… thank you very much! I'm really happy you like the story that much. About Jay and having something up in my sleeve, we'll see about that. Thanks again for the compliments and now go on and read the new chapter.

imag1ne: Glad you liked the newspaper-uncovering. I'm also – of course – happy to hear you think the characters are portrayed alright. That means a lot. Once I've got a little spare time, I'll come and read through Retribution – promise. Thanks for your review. Read on and enjoy now.

Topanga: Thanks very much. Glad you think the characterisations are true to the characters. That's really good to hear. A lot of that credit about grammar and spellings goes to my beta. Here's the next chapter already, to keep your frustration at bay. Thanks for reviewing. Read on and enjoy now.

x x x x x x x

The Past Always Catches Up Part 9

_Shocking revelations _

"That's not possible. It was destroyed," Jarod gasped and got up from his chair in the interrogation room to start pacing.

"It seems they've been renovating it for some time now."

"Why didn't I know that?" Jarod asked briskly, talking to himself more than Sydney.

"I don't know, Jarod. I didn't know about it either," Sydney replied, trying to soothe the younger man.

"When did they bring him in?"

"From what Broots has been able to find, about seven and a half hours ago," Sydney recounted.

Jarod nodded, already starting to analyse the situation and the time frame. "Who's in charge?"

"It seems to be a group project," Sydney's voice displayed the disgust Jarod's old mentor felt. "Raines, Lyle and Cox are in it together."

"Shit," Jarod swore and drew a hand through his hair. He drew a deep breath to calm down and then concentrated back on the task at hand. "Do you know where on that level?"

There were hushed voices in the background.

"Broots says that he must be somewhere in the west wing. The renovations are finished there and there seems to be a tight surveillance and security system."

"Thank you," Jarod said and terminated the connection.

He leaned his back against the wall and let his head fall against it, closing his eyes briefly and trying to calm down and gather his strength. Concentrating, his mind instantly started formulating a plan of action, a plan that would help him free his son.

"Jarod?" Malone spoke up and roused him out of the phase of concentration.

He gritted his teeth and his gaze drilled into Malone. "What?"

"What did your informant say?"

Jarod balled his hands into fists. "It wasn't good news. If you would excuse me now, my wife and I are leaving." Jarod had pushed away from the wall and was out of the room, past the other three agents who had watched the interview through the one-way mirror, before anyone could stop him. He strode through the corridor to where he knew Parker was and barrelled through the door.

Parker looked up at him, her eyes quickly taking in his stance and judging his emotional state.

"We're leaving."

"No, you're not," Malone said from behind him, blocking the door.

Jarod turned on his heel and came face to face with the agent, their faces only inches apart. "Agent Malone, what part was hard to grasp? This is too big for you. You can't help us. This isn't your war so just stay out of it," he growled.

Without turning away from the man, he stretched out his hand to Parker. "We'll go now, Parker." She got up and put her hand in his and together they stalked past the agents.

"We'll just follow you."

Jarod stopped, making Parker come to a halt next to him. "Agent, don't bother to try. I can shake you off in a matter of minutes," Jarod said, shooting a look over his shoulder.

"You didn't lose us earlier today when you pulled your stunt at the airport," Danny reasoned smugly.

Now Jarod turned around. "No, I didn't because I didn't see the need in it. You were far enough away from me so that you couldn't interfere with my plans. Everything else wasn't of importance. I didn't care if you saw what I was doing."

"What makes you think that you could lose us that easily?"

"I have a lot of experience in that area and I'm a pretender, agent Taylor," he looked at the man. "I can become anyone I want to be and I can achieve anything I set my mind to."

The agents looked at him doubtfully.

"See, that's what I meant when I said that you wouldn't believe me." Jarod turned back and started walking again, Parker falling in stride next to him.

"I think he's telling the truth. I mean, we all saw the articles. Maybe that's the solution to it," Danny said and Martin nodded next to him.

Jarod shook his head. "It's the truth, but it's no longer important because you won't see us again. I'll do this my way. Stay out of it."

"Jarod," Parker turned to him and put a hand on his arm. "Maybe they can help."

"And just how do you think they could?" he asked incredulously, turning towards her.

"Maybe they'll be able to shut that place down."

"Parker, I'm not predominantly interested in destroying the Centre. At the moment my interest lies in keeping them from destroying Jay."

"I know that but maybe this is the chance to accomplish both," she reasoned.

The agents watched the communication silently, waiting for whatever it was the parents of the missing boy decided.

"I don't think that they'll be able to help and the problem is we don't have the time to find out if they can. Jay was brought to SL-27 nearly eight hours ago. I don't need to tell you what eight hours mean. It would take too much time to get them into the picture and then _hope_ that they might be able to help; time that we don't have, time in which Jay might be lost," he shook his head. "I won't risk that."

"How are you going to get him out of SL-27 if he's in bad shape, Jarod? He might be badly hurt or unconscious. He wouldn't be able to walk, let along crawl all the way up to the surface."

"See, that's exactly what I still have to find out and what this discussion, and their investigation, is keeping me from. Had we been able to leave at once I might already have answers or it might have never gotten that far because I would already have him back out of there _before_ they could do that much harm," he said explosively.

"Yes, but we weren't able to leave at once and maybe now we have to take what we get; maybe they'll be the key to our problems," she reasoned, pointing at the agents.

"Or the key to a completely different lock that won't help us one little bit."

"We don't have much of a choice. We won't be able to get Jay out of there alone," she shook her head, looking him straight into the eye.

Jarod swallowed and leaned his back against the wall. Suddenly, his resistance and strength was gone. He slowly slid down the wall and buried his head in his hands. The words Parker had just spoken out loud had been exactly what he had feared all the time and what he slowly realized was coming true. They wouldn't be able to liberate Jay alone.

Parker crouched down in front of him. "Jarod, we don't have a choice. Maybe they're our only option; one the Centre doesn't count on. We can't do this on our own. We need them."

He nodded slowly, trying to get his composure back and then grabbed her outstretched hand. She drew him up and he straightened. When he looked up, he was back in control of his feelings, leaving the agents again to wonder how he could switch between those personas. One moment he was highly distressed and the next moment he was cold as ice and calmly assessing the situation.

"Ok, agents. I guess you're in then. You wanted it that way so don't complain," Jarod looked at the agents and shook his head. "Five people are not nearly enough if you want to get that corporation swept. You better get a small army together. We'll be barely able to give you the basic facts before acting. You'll have to take my word. Once I get the impression you're not following me or you might be deciding against trusting me and helping us, I'll leave and do this myself, is that clear?"

x x x x x x x

There were a lot of things that had to be organized very quickly.

It took Jarod and Parker about an hour to lay out the general facts. Everything would have toppled except one agent heard from an FBI investigation that was running against a corporation called "The Centre".

Getting those in charge of the project had taken a while but they had supplied some more useful information and that had brought the breakthrough so that there was no doubt any longer that Jarod and Parker were telling the truth.

The ones in charge of the "Centre"-project had been thrilled about the appearance of Jarod and Parker. Despite their efforts, they had never been able to get enough incriminating evidence and information against the Centre to start a raid. But with what Jarod and Parker could provide, taking legal action was no longer a problem.

Within a little more over two hours Jarod and Parker were out of the FBI headquarters and flying towards the Centre via helicopter, making up the time they had lost due to the explanations.

Jarod had insisted upon going into the Centre himself and the FBI had grudgingly agreed to wait for him to reach the boy before they would start the raid.

They had agreed when Jarod had argued that Jay was not safe as long as no one was there to protect him, which the agents definitely weren't able to as long as they were on the ground level or one of the upper sublevels.

Jarod feared that the Centre would try to silence as many inmates of the Centre as possible once they realized that the war against the official authorities could only be lost.

No one had argued with him about that point after what they had heard over the course of the last sixty minutes. So Jarod was granted a head start in which he would be able to make his travel to the Centre and down into the deepest hole, SL-27. And while they were already travelling to the Centre, the FBI agents were starting to brief every available agent for the raid.

Once Jarod was down on SL-27 and he gave the signal, the raid would be started, no going back possible.

And while Jarod would travel through the Centre's air vents, Parker had set her mind to placing a call to either of her former co-workers and make them pack a few belongings together and leave the city to travel as far away from the Centre and the raid the FBI would start in no more than six or seven hours.

She shook her head, trying to shake off the images and dark thoughts. Sitting next to Jarod in the helicopter, she reached for his hand, trying to instil some confidence in holding it.

"It'll work out," she said, trying to convince both of them.

"I really hope so," he whispered. "I really hope so, because I'm gambling with Jay's life."

To be continued…


	10. Nowhere Fast

Disclaimer: see part one

Thanks to:

Gemini-M: Hee hee, glad you like it. Thanks for telling me so. Now read on and enjoy!

XxX-PhoenixGirl-XxX: Hey, yes, I have my pc back by now. Thanks for asking. Glad you enjoy the story. Here's chapter 10 now.

imag1ne: Well, thanks :blushes: Glad you like the idea and the way it's moving along. Thanks for your review and now enjoy the new chapter.

Carestel: Wow, that's some enthusiastic feedback. I'm glad you like the story so much. Do my best. Thanks for reviewing and now enjoy chapter 10.

xx x x x x x

The Past Always Catches Up Part 10

_Nowhere Fast_

The journey through the Centre's air vents had taken barely three quarters of the time he had calculated. He had needed about three hours to get down to SL-27.

Jarod was panting slightly and looked at Angelo who was still crawling in front of him.

This time Jarod had guessed that he had been dependant on the empath to turn up.

He had a general idea where he would have had to search for Jay but "somewhere in the west wing of SL-27" didn't really narrow it down. The place was still large enough to have him searching for hours for the young man.

Angelo had met up with him and Jarod was grateful for that. He hadn't been sure he would be able to find Jay alone but with the empath at his side, he stood good chances. Angelo seemed to have a definite destination, further supported his hopes.

Still, he knew he needed to get to Jay quickly. He was running out of time.

Suddenly he could hear a distant scream echoing through the vent. Jarod's head snapped up.

He pushed forward, crawling faster in apprehension and making Angelo crawl faster as well.

Screams were echoing through the vents at intervals, getting louder the closer they came to their destination. Jarod's heart started beating faster.

Angelo slowed down and looked at Jarod over his shoulder. Then he stopped. Jarod frowned and tried to push past Angelo but the empath effectively blocked his way.

"Angelo, what is it? I need to get to him," Jarod whispered urgently.

Angelo shook his head and he crawled over to the vents gate that was nearby. Jarod followed him, knowing there must be a reason for his old friend's actions.

The vent opened in the dimly lit hallway just outside Jay's room. Jarod looked over Angelo's shoulder. A guard sat in front of the door to what he suspected was Jay's cell.

"Need door closed. No come in then," Angelo mumbled and Jarod understood.

Another scream of pain echoed through the hallway, making both men wince.

"Wait till bad man gone," Angelo went on.

Jarod swallowed when another scream erupted. "How long will that take?" he asked, his voice rough with tension.

"No long," Angelo said firmly, putting a hand on Jarod's shoulder.

The next minutes were spent in restless waiting, hearing Jay's screams but not being able to do anything about them. Jarod had tried to push past Angelo several times to get closer to where Jay was and maybe to get a glimpse of him, but Angelo had always prevented it.

Suddenly the steel door that was leading into Jay's cell opened and Lyle walked out, followed by four sweepers. Lyle massaged the back of his hand, grinning darkly. "Leave him alone for ten minutes and then get him up again. I don't want him to rest for long. Cox will be here in about fifteen minutes," Lyle told the guard and when he nodded, Lyle turned and walked down the corridor, the sweepers leaving with him.

Angelo started crawling away but he turned when he felt Jarod following him. "No, you wait… do door."

Jarod nodded. "Where are you going, Angelo?"

"Distract guard," Angelo answered and crawled away.

Jarod waited a few minutes and suddenly there was a loud crashing sound and the guard looked up. The man waited a few seconds and looked around then he trotted off to where the sound had come from, quickening his pace when more crashes echoed towards him.

Jarod quickly climbed out of the vent and rushed towards the control panel on the door to Jay's cell. He swiftly tempered with the electronic so that no one would be able to open the door from the outside. When he heard heavy footsteps coming closer, he retreated into the vent and brought the cover up just when the guard rounded the corner.

Angelo was already there, waiting for Jarod.

"Call friends now," Angelo urged.

Jarod nodded, not even beginning to wonder how Angelo knew about the FBI raid. The odd little man had always had a stunning and sometimes frightening insight in what was going on. Plus Jarod was too emotionally worn to argue or ask how his friend knew about it.

When he had given the start signal through the microphone the FBI had given him, Jarod looked up at Angelo expectantly who nodded and then turned around and started crawling again with Jarod following him closely.

It didn't take them long to reach the air vent gate that led to Jay's cell. Jarod peered through the gate over Angelo's back and he gasped loudly at the sight that presented itself. He was out of the air vent in a flash and rushed over to where Jay was. The boy was lying motionless, face down on the floor.

Jarod crouched down in front of him and took in the young man's sight, not touching him before he could get a first superficial view of the injuries in fear to inflict further damage. Then he carefully rolled the boy onto his back, swallowing when he saw the boy's bloody face.

"Jay," he said urgently, his voice trembling. He gently touched he young man's cheek, his palm instantly covered in blood. "Jay."

The boy's eyelids started fluttering and he moaned in pain.

"That's it, come on, Jay. Wake up," Jarod pleaded.

Jay's eyes fluttered open and he tried to lift his head but the pain the motion inflicted and Jarod's hand keeping his head down was preventing him from doing so.

"No, no, no," he mumbled and tried to get away from Jarod. The words got louder with each syllable.

Jarod quickly drew the boy back to him and covered his mouth to keep him from screaming. He didn't want the guard to become suspicious and try to get into the room before he had been told to come in.

Jay weakly tried to struggle against the hands that were holding him.

"Jay, hush. It's me, Jarod," Jarod whispered urgently.

It took some time for the words to break through the fog of pain and despair and register in Jay's mind. He suddenly stopped struggling and blinked his eyes, trying to get them to focus.

Jarod stroked the back of the boy's head and slowly took the hand that was covering the Jay's mouth away.

"Dad?" Jay asked, his voice cracking with pain and fear.

"Hush. Yes it's me. I'm here, Jay. I've got you now. I won't let anyone hurt you," Jarod whispered, his head close to the boy's.

Pain and fatigue made Jay's eyes droop shut again.

Jarod gently laid the boy back down and straightened. He drew in a trembling breath and took a step back to get his emotions under control. He then shrugged off his backpack and opened it, glad that he had decided to take some medical supplies with him.

Before he could start tending Jay again there was a loud banging sound at the door.

Jarod's head shot up and he looked at his watch. Ten minutes were over. The guard was scheduled to come in.

Another loud bang raised Jay from unconsciousness. "No," he whispered, fear colouring his voice. His eyes were scanning the room unseeingly, pupils like pin-pricks, his face contorted in a grimace of fear and pain.

Jarod turned back to the boy. "It's ok, Jay. I'm here. He can't get to you," he said and put a hand on the boy's shoulder. The contact made Jay wince and his eyes shot up at the figure that was hovering over him.

The world was out of focus and the figure blurred. Suddenly it turned into a dark shadow advancing on him. He shook his head weakly and tried to scoot away, looking around for help.

The walls started moving and closing in on him, trying to crush him. Other demons were appearing, grasping his arms and legs, biting bits and pieces out of his body and laughing at him for not being able to protect himself.

Jarod balled his fists at the defensive reaction, watching as Jay fought invisible creatures. He followed to where the boy had managed to drag himself and crouched down in front of him. Grabbing an arm of the fighting young man and bending it to see if his suspicions were correct proved to be more difficult than he had thought. Despite the awful state Jay was in, he gathered all his strength to fight against the demons.

Seeing the needle marks - when he was able to bend one arm long enough to look - confirmed Jarod's worries. He knew that he wouldn't be able to help the boy now.

Jarod roughly held his son's body down to prevent him from getting up and hurting himself further. All the time, Jarod was trying to avoid looking into the eyes that were wide open with fear and yet unseeing to the real world.

The loud banging on the door made his task only harder because each noise startled the boy further, preventing him from coming out of his visions.

Jarod tried to soothe his younger self by whispering soft words of comfort while tears were streaming down his face.

Angelo was huddled in the far corner of the room, his hands covering his ears, rocking back and forth.

To be continued…


	11. Out of it and out of there

Disclaimer: see part one

Just to make sure no one can blame me for not warning you guys: Much angst and some violence in this chapter violence. More or less graphic description of torture. Read at own risk.

Thanks to:

Gemini-M: Well, that's the question isn't it? Read on to find out. Thanks for reviewing, Mercy.

XxX-PhoenixGirl-XxX: Yeah, it's hard on everyone. Glad you like. Thanks for telling me; now here's the next chapter. Enjoy!

imag1ne: Eeeep, I'm happy I got you that much drawn into the story. Glad you like it so much. Thanks again for your review. Here's chapter 11 now, read on and enjoy!

MissEdythe: No need to wait any longer. Chapter 11 is right here. Glad you enjoy the story! Thanks for reviewing, have fun with the next chapter.

xx x x x x

The Past Always Catches Up Part 11

_Out of it and out of there_

It took a long time until Jay finally calmed down and slipped into unconsciousness once again. Jarod was sitting behind him, cradling the boy to him.

The banging on the steel door had stopped some time before, and Jarod guessed that they were either trying different methods of entering the cell, or already focussed on the raid.

He didn't care as long as they didn't get into the room.

Jarod didn't know how long they had sat there before he hesitantly let go of the boy and got up from where he sat on the floor. He started checking Jay's body for injuries.

The boy's face was covered in blood that had by now formed a dry crust. Despite the blood, Jarod could see the bruises forming beneath. Jay's eyes were surrounded by blue circles. Several ribs were broken but none had punctured the lung or any other vital organ. The boy's upper torso was decorated with bruises, scratches and open gashes; some looking like whip marks and others like clean cuts from a blade or something of that kind. And others that looked suspiciously like burn marks.

Jay's back was no different.

Jarod swallowed with difficulty and clenched his teeth. He let his eyes wander further over the battered body. Bloody rings were encircling the boy's wrists.

Jarod picked one arm up and took out a package of sterile gauze out of his backpack.

The tender skin had been torn apart, leaving only raw flesh, encrusted with blood that had dried there.

Jarod purposely shut his mind from the fact that it was not an anonymous person lying in front of him like in a hospital during one of the pretends, but his younger self, brother and son. He needed to concentrate on the task of giving him the best medical treatment he could provide.

Jarod looked at his watch and blinked. It was well over an hour since he had given the signal. Obviously the FBI encountered more difficulties than they had foreseen, otherwise they would have already been here.

Jarod sat down next to Jay, his back against the wall, gently stroking the boy's sweat soaked hair and let his eyes wander around the room. A pair of handcuffs were dangling from the ceiling, making him shudder.

There was no doubt that Jay had been chained to those during the torture sessions one of the monsters had held. Jarod's gaze was drawn down to the body and his eyes came to rest on the now gauze-covered wrists. The wounds beyond the bandages were proving his theory. Without wanting it, the scene started to play out in front of him:

_Hung up on the handcuffs on the ceiling, Jay had had to endure the pain his captors subjected him to, intending to break him. The steel cuffs had broken through the tender skin of the boy's wrists._

Jarod's jaw trembled and he breathed shakily when he drew himself out of his unintended simulation.

He couldn't do any more for Jay than what he had. "I'm here Jay. It's gonna be ok," he mumbled soothingly.

Jay started trembling and Jarod replied by whispering more soothing words and gently caressing the boy's cheek, careful not to further hurt him.

When his thumb touched something wet, he realized that Jay was crying softly. "It's ok. I'm here," Jarod whispered.

"Dad?"

"Shhh, yeah. Yeah, I'm here," he reassured the young man again.

Jay started sobbing and Jarod pulled him just a bit closer. "I'm here. They can't hurt you any longer. I won't let them."

"I want to go home," Jay whispered in a forlorn voice.

"We'll be out of here in no time. Don't worry. I'm here. You're not alone," Jarod replied and took one of Jay's hands in his own. "I won't let them hurt you again, I promise."

Jarod didn't notice Angelo getting up from his seated position on the other side of the cell and slipping back into the air vent. He only came back into reality when he heard someone working on the steel door again.

His head snapped up and he reached for the gun that he had taken with him. During his travel and stay in the Centre, it had set untouched in a holster on Jarod's lower back. He drew it with the effortlessness of repetition and pointed it at the door, his aim steady.

When the metal door opened, he was ready to fire but when Angelo's head appeared in the gap and he looked at him, Jarod dropped his aim.

The empath had left the cell to meet up with the agents and help them put the electrics on the door panel back to work.

Parker pushed Angelo out of the way and strode into the cell, taking in the sight of Jarod sitting with his back against the wall and Jay drawn close to him. She gasped when she quickly surveyed the state Jay was in. A hand flew to her mouth just as FBI agents and paramedics piled into the room.

Jarod met her gaze and she saw the fear in his eyes; fear for the boy that lay sprawled out next to him.

Next to Parker, agents Taylor and Fitzgerald came to an abrupt halt, guns in hand but lowered at their sides. Both men's gazes were drawn to the boy who lay unconscious on the floor. While Taylor's face showed few emotions, hiding most of them well, the younger agent next to him couldn't suppress his feelings. His eyes went wide at the sight that presented itself; the tiny concrete room, the beaten and battered boy, the blood and the sight of the room with a pair of handcuffs dangling from the ceiling.

Once Jarod consciously realized the people piling into the room, he breathed a sigh of relief. He helped the paramedics, giving them information about the boy's state and what he had done so they could start treating Jay.

No one knew what it was that made the young man regain consciousness; if it were the hands that roamed all over his body to check for and treat injuries or if it was the mass of people in the room. No one knew and it didn't matter anyway.

Jay suddenly started fighting against the hands that were trying to help him, his eyes wide with fear. "No," he screamed hysterically while trying to free his hands and feet from the grasp of several pairs of hands.

Jarod had grudgingly drifted away from the boy after the paramedics words about letting them do their work, but once Jay started fighting and screaming he pushed through the people that stood in his way.

When he finally got to him, Jarod crouched down next to the boy's head. "Jay, Jay," he spoke the boy's name urgently. "Jay, I'm here. It's ok," he tried to get the boys attention and then reached out to touch his cheek.

Jay saw the hand advancing on him and he trashed his head around, away from his father's hand.

"Hold his head so he won't hurt himself," one of the paramedics ordered and Jarod did as he had been told. He tried to keep a firm but tender grip, his thumb stroking the frightened boy's cheek. "Jay, it's ok. We won't hurt you," he kept on mumbling, trying to break through the boy's panic.

Jay's eyes seemed to focus on Jarod for a fleeting moment, but then they darted to a point behind Jarod on the wall and his eyes went wide. He tried to roll himself together into a tight ball but was yet again held down.

"No, no, please," he pleaded, his eyes still fixed on what he was seeing behind Jarod. He clenched his eyes shut and opened them again, hoping that the monster was gone but he was rewarded with its multiplying. He screamed in utter panic when the creatures closed in on him, circling him. His eyes were wild, lost in a drug-induced illusion.

"Jay," Jarod tried again to break through to him. He tried to turn the young man's head towards him but Jay's eyes remained fixed on the demons were hunting him. Jay was still wildly trashing around, fighting with all his strength against the monsters that were now holding him down.

Jarod had already briefed the paramedics about the drug abuse. "You don't know what drug is running in his system?" one of them asked.

Jarod shook his head. "No but even if I knew, I doubt that you would have anything as a fitting counterpart."

"Hold his arm still," another one of the paramedics ordered while tapping the bubbles out of a syringe filled with sedatives.

Having a hard time to keep his arm still, the paramedics finally managed to slip the syringe into the boy's arm. Only seconds later, the trashing slowed down until it eventually stopped and the boy's body relaxed when he slipped into unconsciousness.

Jarod closed his eyes briefly and then looked up. When his eyes met Parker's he swallowed.

Once Jay couldn't fight the treatment, he was quickly loaded onto a stretcher and within minutes the group was on its way through the Centre's hallways to get back to the surface, Jarod and Parker sticking to Jay's side like glue.

Martin and Danny let the other people pile out of the room first. It didn't take long before they stood there alone and in silence. The room wouldn't be vacant for long. It would be crawling with crime scene investigators soon but right now it was empty but for the two agents standing side by side.

"You ok?" Danny asked, observing his partner.

Martin nodded mutely without looking up. His gaze was still fixed on the spot where the tortured boy had been lying only moments ago. Another missing person found, but even though this one was alive, no triumph about finding him took over.

"Martin," Danny tried again to get the other agent's attention. He gently touched the other man's shoulder. Sure enough, Martin's head came up slowly and he faced his partner. His eyes were still wide with incredulity and he was fighting for control. He looked about to be sick.

"I'm time and time again astonished what cruelty humankind is capable of." With that Martin turned and practically fled the room.

To be continued…


	12. Safe not sound

Disclaimer: see part one

Author's Note: Some more angst

Thanks to:

Topanga: Glad you think so! Thanks for telling me and now here's the next chapter. Enjoy!

NYT: Heh, yes, it was time for someone to pick up on that. Glad you like. Thanks for the review and now enjoy chapter 12.

XxX-PhoenixGirl-XxX: Poor Jay indeed. He's in for a rough time. Thanks for reviewing and now enjoy.

Gemini-M: I hope so, too. We'll see about that later. Thanks for your review and now read on and enjoy.

imag1ne: Of course I wasn't kidding. I'm glad you think this came across; wasn't always easy to write (especially when you feel sorry for the guy you're tormenting… makes it harder all around). Anyway, here's the next chapter now. Enjoy!

x x x x x x x

The Past Always Catches Up Part 12

_Safe; not sound_

Jarod had gone with Jay in the ambulance. There hadn't been enough space for Parker.

She had stood in front of the Centre and had let her gaze sweep around for a minute after the ambulance rolled away.

Police cars stood all over the place. People were coming out of the Centre's entrance, leading others in handcuffs towards the nearest official vehicles.

She knew that most of the top players had already been arrested.

Lyle and Cox had been led out of the building as the troop set to make its way down to SL-27, had entered the Centre.

Lyle had shot her an icy glance and stopped. "You," he had growled.

She had stepped up to him, invading his personal space. "Yes, me," she had replied icily. "I've told you once that you should never underestimate me. And now you made the colossal mistake by taking Jay from us. You gave us no other choice."

"Where is he?" Lyle had asked, looking around.

"With Jay," she had replied, throwing him another glare, and then stepped out of Lyle's way as they lead him out of the building towards the police cars. She had made her way down to SL-27 together with the agents and paramedics, to find Jay in worse shape than she had anticipated.

"Ma'am," an FBI agent stepped up to her, drawing her out of the memory.

She turned and looked at the young man. "Agent Fitzgerald," she answered tiredly, brushing a hand through her hair.

"Let me drive you over to the hospital," he half suggested, half stated.

She was suspicious for an instant but then nodded. "Thank you," she replied, gratefully.

When they were in the vehicle, following the ambulance, she looked over at him. "Does agent Malone know where you are?"

"Yes, he knows. I informed him before I came to you," Martin nodded and smiled warmly at her.

"You won't get any questions answered at the moment; not from me, not from Jarod and certainly not from Jay," she looked at him suspiciously again.

"That's not important at the moment," he shook his head without turning towards her.

She observed him for some time but only saw fatigue, shock and disbelief. "You didn't know what you were walking into when you came into the cell on SL-27 did you?" she asked.

"No," he admitted, one hand leaving the steering wheel and brushing it through his hair. "But would you have been prepared for _that_ had you been in my place?" he shot her a look.

Parker turned away from him for a second, contemplating his question. "No, I wouldn't have. _I_ knew what would await us and I was shocked how bad it was," she mumbled. "And it wasn't as if I hadn't seen it before."

"You have?" he asked, looking over at her once more.

A sad smile lingered on her face for a second when she met his gaze. "I sort of grew up in that place," she shrugged. "Yes, I've seen it before. I saw some of what happened to Jarod but then I only saw tapes and not the reality… and the films were bad enough."

Agent Fitzgerald nodded thoughtfully. "I can imagine. I'm glad that you decided to get the agency on the case," he admitted after a few minutes pause.

The rest of the ride was made in silence.

x x x x x x x

Sometime during the examinations Jay had started to come round. He had slipped in and out of consciousness from then on, sometimes seemingly clear and aware of his surroundings, but other times extremely disoriented and hallucinating. He had kept fighting and thrashing on those occasions forcing the doctors to strap him to the bed in order to not hurt himself or anyone else.

Time and time again, Jarod and Parker had tried to break through the boy's panic, but Jay was still too deeply immersed in the effects of the drugs that were floating in his system.

The physicians had decided against giving the boy any more sedatives for the fear they could react with the drugs he had been given in the Centre.

Jay would have to ride it out - something that nearly broke Jarod's and Parker's heart. Seeing the boy so obviously in distress and panic, not recognizing his surroundings, and completely out of touch with reality, was horrible for them.

Sometimes when he woke up his eyes seemed to focus, but he didn't speak or acknowledge Jarod or Parker's presence.

Parker sat next to Jarod in the small hospital room where Jay lay in the semi-darkness. After the examinations the hospital staff had wheeled Jay into the room. A nurse came to check on his state every fifteen minutes, giving the parents a sympathetic glance every time she entered the room.

The examinations had taken a while but they hadn't brought up any new shocking revelations about Jay's state. The wounds had been treated, some of them stitched up, others merely disinfected and wrapped up again.

The night wore on, sometimes an eerie silence filling the room, merely interrupted by the beeps of the machines Jay had been hooked to in order to monitor his vitals. At other times the silence was broken with the echoing of frightened screams.

Parker let her gaze sweep over the boy's battered body once more. The damage that had been inflicted from down the waist wasn't visible - covered by a blanket - but his torso was bare. It seemed as if most of it was covered in bandages and plaster, and what wasn't, was decorated with antiseptic ointment, stitches or multi-coloured bruises.

Jay's eyes were sunken into his skull now that he was sleeping. Tubes were running into his body, providing him with fluids and medication.

The arms were strapped to the bed at the wrists and Parker knew that his ankles were equally secured even if it wasn't visible due to the blanket.

She felt herself tremble and tore her gaze away from the boy, looking over at Jarod instead.

He sat in his chair, one hand resting in his lap and the other on Jay's arm, running up and down lightly in an unconscious motion. He looked worn out and broken, shoulders slumped and eyes hollow.

"Hey, why don't you get yourself some coffee?" she turned to him, gently taking the hand that was lying in his lap in her own.

"No, I need to stay here," he replied automatically, without looking up from his younger self.

"I'm here. He's not alone. Jarod, you look like hell. Go get yourself some coffee."

"No, I can't leave him now."

"Jarod, you and I both know that he will need you soon. He'll need you very badly and it won't help him if you are too tired to be there for him and provide him with the attention, reassurance and help he needs. You are his security, Jarod. You always were and you'll always be. You can't help him if you are too drained out to keep yourself upright."

He nodded slowly. "Maybe I can get the bed over there," he stated, half turning in his seat to indicate the hospital bed that stood in the corner of the room.

"I'll ask the nurse when she comes the next time. In the meantime, at least eat something."

He nodded tiredly. "But you'll stay with him?"

"Of course."

"Ok," he finally relented and got up from his seat tiredly.

Parker scooted closer to the bed and reached for the arm Jarod had caressed before. She gently drew her hand up and down Jay's arm, repeating the motion over and over like Jarod had done before.

x x x x x x x

Night slowly turned into morning. Jarod had indeed got the spare bed and he was able to grab some sleep. Yet he was out of the bed whenever the boy woke up screaming, fighting imaginary monsters.

It was tiring and horrible for both Parker and Jarod. They couldn't do anything. Over the course of both their lives, they had always been on the fighting-side, always acting and reacting, but now they were forced to watch their son fighting invisible demons and they couldn't help one little bit. They could only sit by and try to reassure the boy, not even sure if he realized that they were there at all.

"Parker, you should get some sleep as well," Jarod whispered when Jay had quieted down once more after an attack.

She looked up at him. "You'll need it more than me once he's lucid."

"Maybe, but I got some rest. I'm fine now."

"You're far from being fine," she shook her head, seeing the deep lines in his face and the tiredness in his eyes.

He sighed. "True, but sleep won't help," he said, looking at Jay with sad eyes. "You didn't sleep the last few hours as well. Now it's your turn."

She nodded slowly. "Ok, maybe you're right."

x x x x x x x

It took another four hours for Jay to wake up. By then it was bright day; about fifteen hours after they had rescued Jay from the Centre.

Jarod was still watching over Jay. Everything had been fairly silent for the last two hours. The panic attacks and Jay's waking, screaming, and fighting against something that only he could see had lessened gradually.

The boy let out a low moan, something that got Jarod's attention. His eyes instantly flew over to Jay's face. Sure enough, the boy's eyelids started fluttering. It took him some time to work up the strength to pry them open. Once open Jay slowly let his gaze wander around the room.

It was when he tried to move his arms and found them tied down his heart rate speed up. The beeping of the monitor becoming more erratic, and his moves became more frantic.

Jarod instantly scooted closer and intensified his gentle grip on Jay's arm.

Jay's head spun around towards the person he hadn't realized was there before.

"Hush, it's ok," Jarod mumbled the words he had spoken more often in the last hours than he had ever wanted to utter them.

When Jay's gaze cleared again after the rapid movement of his head, his features relaxed once recognition hit. He started crying softly.

"Hey, it's ok. I'm here. You're safe now," Jarod whispered once more and slowly got up from his seat. He sat down on the bed next to Jay, to be closer to him. He pressed the call button. Gently caressing Jay's face, wiping the tears away without hurting him, he kept on whispering soothing words.

Despite the restraints, Jay tried time and time again to lift his hands from the bed to grab Jarod's hand.

Jarod gently put his hand on Jay's after one of the futile attempts. "It's ok."

"Why am I tied?" Jay choked out through his tears.

"Shhh, we had to keep you from moving around too much so that you wouldn't hurt yourself," Jarod replied softly, already starting to unbuckle the straps.

The door opened and the nurse came in, making Jay flinch and Jarod look up.

"He's awake," Jarod announced softly and then instantly turned back to Jay. "It's ok. They won't hurt you. You're safe." He kept on reassuring Jay for several more minutes.

"Where--" Jay started, but was interrupted by the door opening again, this time revealing the doctor.

Jay's eyes darted over to the door and Jarod quickly ordered the doctor to stay where he was with a gesture of his hand.

"Hey, my boy, look at me," Jarod gently ordered and Jay's eyes came back to him. "You're in a hospital. No one here is trying to hurt you, ok?"

Jay nodded uncertainly.

"I promise," Jarod looked deep into the boy's eyes and then motioned for the doctor to come over to the bed.

"Hello there," Dr. Sanders said, keeping his voice down so as not to startle his young patient any further. Nervousness and fear radiated from the boy in waves and the physician kept a small distance away, giving his patient some space.

Jay eyed him warily. He would have long since tried to get away from the man if his father hadn't been next to him.

The doctor smiled gently. "My name is Brian. Can you tell me yours?"

Jay's eyes flickered over to Jarod who nodded encouragingly. "Jay," he said slowly.

"Hello Jay," the doc smiled but didn't try to move closer to the boy. "Jay, can you tell me if you're in pain right now?"

Jay looked at the man closely, suspicious still but relaxing slightly. The man hadn't tried to get any closer to him. He shook his head slowly.

"Was that a 'you can't tell me' or a 'you're in no pain'?" Sanders smiled at the teen, trying to get him to relax. The doctor still kept a close eye on the patient, paying attention to the signs he sent out. The boy was slowly relaxing but the physician knew that moving towards him now would destroy what little amount of trust he had managed to establish.

"No pain," Jay shook his head slowly and wished he hadn't.

"But a headache?" Brian asked, seeing Jay wince at the slight movement.

"Hmm."

"Do you want something for it?"

"No," Jay replied quickly.

The doctor barely kept his eyes from narrowing in confusion at the answer, knowing that the suspicious boy might misinterpret the gesture as anger. "Ok," he barely replied.

Jay's eyes darted over to Jarod. "I want to go home," he mumbled.

"I know," Jarod replied and gently stroked Jay's head.

"I'm sure that you want to go home as soon as you can, Jay. I can't promise you it'll be possible right now but I'd like to get a closer look at you so I can assess your state and maybe already give you an idea when it'll be possible for you to leave here," Dr. Sanders said softly.

Jay briefly closed his eyes, swallowing the disappointment that he wouldn't get out of the hospital soon. He was still disoriented and everything was fuzzy. He didn't know his surroundings and he didn't feel safe. When he opened his eyes again, the doctor hadn't moved an inch. He was still watching him. "Ok," Jay whispered.

"Do you think it would be ok if I came over to you so that I might examine you more closely?"

"Ok."

Brian smiled and slowly stepped closer to the bed. He walked up and came to stand next to Jarod.

"Do you think I could take your father's seat for a few minutes?"

Jay nodded insecurely. "But he'll stay?" he asked fearfully.

"Of course," Dr. Sanders nodded instantly.

Jay watched his face for signs of ingenuity but found none. "Ok," he finally said.

Jarod slowly got up from his position on the bed and made room for the physician. He stepped closer to Jay's head instead, knowing that Jay would want to have him close and where he could see him.

Jay relaxed slightly during the examination when he felt Dr. Sanders was no threat to him.

After doing some more tests, Brian smiled widely. "Well, Jay. That's all for now. Thank you for letting me examine you."

Jay's lips turned into a hesitant smile.

"Jarod, maybe we could go out for a few minutes and talk about the results I already got back?" Brian asked.

Jay tensed instantly at hearing that he would be left alone. "No, don't leave," he whispered pleadingly and looked up at Jarod.

"Maybe the lady over there might want keep an eye on you for the time Jarod and I are outside," Brian suggested, looking over to the spare bed where Parker sat.

Parker got up from her seated position on the bed that stood in the dark corner of the room. She had awoken shortly after the doctor had come into the room but she had stayed where she was, not wanting to frighten Jay with movements he could barely see out of the corner of his eye, and giving the physician the possibility to examine him without three people standing around. She had wanted to get closer to the boy she viewed as a son, but had restrained herself. Parker hadn't known that the doctor had been aware of her being awake. She knew Jarod had been for their gazes had met briefly. She slowly moved closer to the bed.

Jay's eyes flew over to her when Brian turned slightly into her direction. "Mom."

"Hey Jay," she smiled and sat down on the spot that the doctor had vacated just before.

"Mom," Jay whispered again and a tear escaped him.

"Shhh, I'm here," she bent down and kissed his forehead.

"Jay, if you need anything; pain medication or something, just tell your parents and they'll call me, ok? In the meantime, I want you to get some rest," Dr. Sanders ordered gently waiting for Jay to nod before turning to Jarod and motioning for him to follow him outside.

To be continued…

Wow people, you can't complain about the length of this chapter! But I'm sure, you would have wanted it even longer, right? Anyway, reviews anybody?


	13. Aftereffects

Disclaimer: see part one

Author's Note: Some more angst. Don't get me wrong, I don't hate Jay but I can't have him go back to his old happy self right now. No, not possible. He'll have to suffer for some more time.

Sorry for the delay. RL is kicking my butt right now. Here's the new chapter now though.

Thanks to:

imag1ne: Glad you liked the last chapter. :bows: And yes, the agents are gonna appear again, one last time. Here's the new chapter now. Thanks for the feedback and now enjoy!

NYT: Heh, yeah everyone screams for longer chapters. I had been tempted to leave it with the rescue but I changed some chapters and put them a little differently together and so you've been spared. Glad you liked and thanks for telling. Now read the new chapter.

Gemini-M: Well, really recovering from what he went through… let's see about that, shall we? Anyway, glad you're still with me and enjoying the ride. Thanks for the review and now enjoy chapter 13.

MissEdythe: Yay, glad you think it comes across. In fact, I'll end this story rather soon but there'll be a last sequel so don't fear to be left hanging. Here's the new chapter now. Hope you'll enjoy!

Ms. DiDI: I'm happy to hear you like the story. Thanks for telling me so! Now here's chapter 13. Enjoy!

x x x x x x

The Past Always Catches Up Part 13

_After-effects_

Jay sighed tiredly when the door closed. "I want to go home, Mom," he whispered a tear escaping when he tightly screwed his eyes shut.

"I know you do, Jay," she replied equally quiet and gently brushed the tear away with her thumb. "And we'll leave here as soon as the doctor says you can."

Jay nodded slowly and then winced at the pain that shot through his head.

"Are you in pain?" she asked, watching him.

"No," Jay lied.

"Jay," she warned gently. "Are you in pain?"

"My head hurts."

"Then I'll get Dr. Sanders back in here again," she had already got up from the bed.

"No, please."

Parker retook her seat and watched Jay closely. "Jay, he won't harm you. Jarod and I wouldn't let him. If you're in pain, why won't you let him help you?"

"I don't want any medication."

"But you don't have to make yourself suffer," she stated, looking directly at him.

"I don't want any needles," Jay mumbled, barely audible.

Parker gritted her teeth to keep from cursing. "Jay, there're medications he can give you without an injection, you know that."

Jay kept silent and Parker withdrew slightly. "How about I talk to him and ask him if he can do something about your head that doesn't include needles?"

"Would you?"

"Of course I would," her features softened further and she gently caressed his cheek.

Jay leaned into the touch. "Thank you, Mom."

She shook her head and then got up. "I'll be back in just a few seconds, ok?"

Jay nodded uncertainly and Parker left the room with several big strides.

She sighed gratefully when she saw Jarod and Dr. Sanders sitting on a bench just a few feet from the door. Both looked up at her when she came out of the room and Jarod instantly sprung to his feet, anxious that something had happened.

"Relax, Jarod, he's ok," she waved a dismissive hand at him and Jarod sighed, calming down.

"What is it then?"

"He's in pain. He says that he's got a headache."

"Did it get any worse?" Dr. Sanders asked.

"He didn't say, but I don't think it did. He didn't want to say anything at first, but he'd like to have some painkillers now," she paused. "Something that doesn't include needles," she added pointedly, looking directly at the physician.

Dr. Sanders grimaced slightly and got up from his seat, walking past Parker into the room.

Jay's eyes nervously darted over to the door. When he saw his mother coming into the room, he relaxed visibly.

"Hey, I said I'd be back in no time," she gently reminded him, noting the signs of fear.

Jay nodded and let out a breath.

"Jay, your Mom here tells me that you've changed your mind about the painkillers," the doctor said, making Jay nod uncertainly. "I understood that you don't want an injection."

"Yeah," Jay conceded.

"Ok," Brian said evenly. "Would it be ok if I injected something into the tube over there," Sanders asked, nodding at IV and waiting for Jay's permission. "Ok, then I'll go get the medication. I'll be back in a few minutes," the doctor announced after Jay had agreed and then left the room.

A few minutes later Dr. Sanders came back in and nonchalantly walked over to the rack with the saline solution. He felt the Jay's eyes following him and looked up while he fingered with the tube and imbedded the syringe into it. "Hey," he smiled at Jay who smiled back shyly. Sanders stepped back from the rack and his smile brightened. "See, I'm done." He held up his empty hands. The syringe had already vanished into one of his coat pockets.

Jay nodded slowly.

"Would you mind my prying your father away again for a while?" he asked, making Jay smile again and shake his head 'no'. "And you get some rest, young man, ok?"

"Ok," Jay replied earnestly. He was gradually relaxing in the presence of the physician.

Jarod and Dr. Sanders left the room again and Parker retook her place next to Jay. She gently touched his cheek and felt Jay relaxing further.

"I'm here, Jay. Just relax and go to sleep. We'll watch over you," she whispered and Jay slowly let his eyes drift shut. In a matter of minutes he was asleep. He didn't hear Jarod come back into the room minutes later.

Parker looked up at Jarod.

"He says that the drugs seemed to have worn off. His pupils are still constricted, but not half as badly as when he arrived. The blood results just came back but they couldn't identify the drug that had been given to him. His lungs are ok, just as they thought earlier. He'll need antibiotics for a few days so none of the wounds get infected," he told her.

"When will we be able to get him home?"

Jarod huffed. "He's didn't want to be too specific about that. He says that it'll probably take a few days. He wants to wait until he's certain the drugs are out of Jay's system and he's off most of the meds."

Parker nodded.

Jarod sat down next to her. Silently he took her hand and dropped a kiss on it, and then gave her a sad smile.

x x x x x x

Jay was asleep for most of the rest of the day, but every time he woke up his eyes searched the room until he found his parents. Only then would he relax.

Parker had managed to convince Jarod to find a hotel room and then stay there for some sleep while she stayed in the hospital. Even though Jarod had argued, he had eventually relented and admitted being tired.

Parker had promised she would stay with Jay until he was back.

Jay seemed to sleep soundly for now, but eventually the memories of what he had endured would surface and torture him - and Jarod would be the only one who would be able to really calm him down.

It had always been that way since they had started their life as a small family.

Jay had always had nightmares just as Jarod had them.

She managed to calm him down and to chase away the lighter ones, but once Jay was deeply immersed in a nightmare, he wouldn't calm down until Jarod was near.

The relationship had always been special between Jarod and Jay. At first she hadn't been sure if it was because of their shared blood, but later she decided otherwise. At first she had been envious of the relationship the two men shared, only later had she started to understand the connection those two shared.

Jarod had told her about the state Jay had been in when he had come to where Jay had lived with the Major's friends, and how Jarod had managed to break through the self-destructive fog Jay had retreated into at the time. From then on she had understood the relationship between the two of them better.

Jay was dependant on Jarod when it came to the more horrific nightmares. Maybe it was because they both had endured similar things. So though she might be able to help, she wouldn't be able to help him in the darkest hours - not as Jarod could.

She knew Jay would need Jarod around once the memories of those cruel hours he had spent in the Centre started to surface. And once they did, Jarod probably wouldn't get much sleep. That was why she had sent him away to get some rest now.

Gently she traced the features of Jay's face, making him stir slightly.

She was glad they had got him out of the Centre before they had been able to break him. She knew without a doubt that they would have succeeded this time; a thought that made her shudder.

The door behind her opened and Dr. Sanders entered quietly.

"How is he?" he asked gently.

"He's asleep most of the time."

"That's good," he said, jotting something down in Jay's chart.

Parker pursed her lips. "Only as long as there are no nightmares."

"Did he have any?"

"Not yet, but they'll come. After what he's been through I'm astonished they haven't surfaced yet." She gritted her teeth.

The physician nodded his head sadly.

"Don't you ever call it a day?" Parker asked suddenly, trying to lighten the mood.

"Yes, I do. In an hour and a half to be exact," he said with a small grin.

Parker nodded thoughtfully.

"Don't worry, I'll brief Conny very thoroughly," he interpreted her thoughts correctly.

"Conny?"

"Yes, Dr. Cornelia Thompson. She's very good and I don't think she'll get into trouble with Jay," Dr. Sanders explained and smiled at her reassuringly.

"That's good," Parker replied and relaxed slightly.

Shortly afterwards Dr. Sanders left her alone with Jay again and the evening wore on without any difficulties.

Jarod came back sometime late in the evening and found Parker sleeping with her head resting on Jay's bed, both of them asleep.

He smiled and then hesitantly woke Parker up. "Hey," he nudged her shoulder.

Parker's head shot up at once.

"It's ok. It's only me," Jarod soothed her. "Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."

She rubbed a hand over her eyes. "No, it's ok."

"We should swap," he said and gave her the room key.

Parker nodded tiredly. "There's a new physician. Dr. Sanders shift is over," she informed Jarod, making him grimace slightly.

"Did Jay already see him?"

"Her," Parker corrected. "Dr. Cornelia Thompson. But no, Jay was barely awake. I don't think he really realized anything," she smiled, shooting the sleeping boy another glance.

"Ok," Jarod nodded. "Call a cab and get some sleep," he ordered gently, making Parker nod. She got up from her seat, letting Jarod sit down.

"I hope that the night won't get too hard," she whispered and bent down to drop a kiss on Jay's forehead.

"Yeah, I hope so as well," Jarod replied softly, telling her that he knew why she had sent him to get some sleep earlier. "Thank you, Parker," he captured her hand.

She smiled and then bent down to steal a kiss from him, which he eagerly gave her.

"Go on and get some sleep now," he whispered against her lips.

x x x x x x

Everything was silent for the next hour or so but then Jay started to get agitated.

At first he was merely stirring slightly, but soon he was trying to shield off his demons and protect his head.

"Jay, it's ok. It's only a nightmare. You're safe," he mumbled, catching one of Jay's hands in his.

A nurse chose that time to come into the room. She saw the boy thrashing around and quickly came closer. She was about to grab him to hold him still, when Jarod turned towards her. "No, leave him. You won't help him by holding him down," he shook his head.

She hesitated.

"Believe me. It's not the first nightmare he's encountering over the years," Jarod stated.

The nurse nodded and then let her hands sink. "Shall I get the sedatives?" she asked.

"No, it's ok. He'll calm down," Jarod shook his head.

"Ok," she finally relented and left the room.

Jarod turned back to Jay who was still fighting the demons in his sleep. "It's ok. Jay, come on, wake up. It's a nightmare."

When he finally managed to rouse him after a while, Jay lay in the bed, panting. His eyes were darting back and forth, the unfamiliar room only adding to his discomfort.

"Hush, it's ok," Jarod reassured him again and again.

Over the course of the night those episodes came more and more frequently, leaving both Jay and Jarod exhausted.

Jarod got the impression that once Jay closed his eyes, the nightmares resurfaced, leaving Jay covered in sweat once he woke up again.

After yet another nightmare, Jay just didn't seem to relax.

"Jay, look at me," Jarod ordered gently, waiting for Jay to comply. "You're ok. You're safe. I'm here and I won't let anyone hurt you," he reassured his son once more. He was certain that Jay consciously knew he was safe but that fact just didn't seem to be getting through to him.

Jay struggled to sit up, his eyes filling with tears.

"Shhh, it's ok," Jarod soothed and gently wiped a stray tear away. "It's ok. I'm right here," Jarod mumbled and sat down on the bed next to Jay, hugging him.

It took a long time until Jay finally calmed down, and even longer until fell into an exhausted sleep. Jarod carefully moved on the bed, trying not to jostle Jay too much as he lay down besides his son.

To be continued…


	14. Step by step

Disclaimer: see part one.

Author's Note: RL is still so keeping me from everything and I suck majorly for not finding the time to update; I suck even more for not being happy with this story any longer and seriously reconsidering the sequel I had in mind. #sighs# so not all is good. Anyway, here's chapter 14 now.

Thanks to:

XxX-PhoenixGirl-XxX: Thanks, glad you liked the last chapter. Well, can't promise they are going home really soon but we'll see. Thanks for your review and now read on and enjoy.

NYT: YAY, I'm happy to hear you like the portrayed relationship between Jarod and Jay. That's good to know. About real lives needing to take a break… definitely but sadly there's no real break to be seen until Christmas or so. Anyway, thanks for your review. Read on now and enjoy this chapter.

Gemini-M: Yep, poor Jay indeed and also right that he'll need quite some time to get over this. Family is around though. Thanks for reviewing and now enjoy chapter 14.

imag1ne: Glad to hear you're not bothered by Parker and Jarod as a family… because, sadly, these days I am. #sighs# Thanks for the compliment on the characters though – that means a lot. Now read on and enjoy the new chapter.

MissEdythe: Yeah, I also always hate seeing long stories come to an end but sadly there has to be an ending for everything, right? There are some more chapters left though and maybe there's the sequel (though I won't promise anything here). Thanks for your feedback and now enjoy chapter 14.

x x x x x x x

The Past Always Catches Up Part 14

_Step by step_

Parker carefully poked her head through the door, finding both Jarod and Jay asleep. Jarod was lying on his side with his back facing towards the door and Jay was pressed as close to Jarod as his battered body would allow.

She smiled sadly, knowing it must have been a very rough night for them. She had only found Jay huddled that close to Jarod twice before and on both occasions it had been a terrible night.

The first time had been before the Major, Emily and Ethan had joined them. They had received a message from Angelo, telling them that the rest of their family was in great danger and Lyle was on his way to capture them.

They had just barely evaded the capture, thanks to a hastily made call.

Jay had been greatly distressed, even though he had been able to speak them on the telephone. Memories of his liberation had returned, combined with repressed memories from his past in the Centre.

Jarod had gone to help Jay calm down but he hadn't returned to their bedroom. At first she hadn't thought anything of it. Just as with Jarod, it always took a while to get Jay to re-emerge from a nightmare and calm down. But when she had awoken to an empty bed two or three hours later she had gone investigating and found Jay huddled close to Jarod. Jarod had been awake and gestured for her to go back to bed and that everything was fine.

The other occasion had been after Jay had watched the news and learned that one of his simulations had been used to make a successful assassination on an ambassador's life.

Jay had been upset but had seemed to be ok after both she and Jarod had talked to him for a long time. It was only during the night that his screams had echoed through the house - the news report had forced memories from simulations and sessions with Raines re-emerge.

She had tried to help Jarod calm Jay down but had soon realized that this was one of the occasions where she couldn't help.

After sharing a glance with Jarod she had gone back to bed, getting only little sleep afterwards.

Again she had found Jarod still in Jay's room at morning.

Parker breathed deeply to get her composure back, walked into the room, and sat down on the vacant chair next to the bed.

She had barely sat down when Jarod's head turned and he looked at her. There were dark circles under his eyes.

"Hey," he mumbled tiredly.

"Hey yourself," she whispered back and stretched to give him a kiss.

Jarod slowly and carefully extracted himself from Jay's embrace to get up. He motioned for her to follow him to a corner of the room so that they could talk without disturbing Jay.

"I take that it was a rough night," Parker said, touching Jarod's cheek.

Jarod briefly leaned into her touch and then rubbed a hand over his burning eyes. "Rough is a mild word for it. We both didn't get a lot of sleep. I think I only managed to get him to calm down about an hour and a half ago."

Parker grimaced and then embraced him firmly, trying to give him some strength through the firm but gentle embrace. She knew he was bone tired but she also feared that he wouldn't get out of the hospital any time soon. Jarod would probably sleep on the bed that stood in the far corner of the room the next time, if he was able to sleep at all.

"Get yourself some breakfast," she whispered and withdrew slightly.

Jarod nodded and then quietly walked out of the room after dropping a kiss on her nose.

Parker followed him with her eyes until the door closed. Only then did she turn and walk over to the bed where Jay was still sleeping.

x x x x x x x

Jarod leaned with his back against the door in the hospital corridor. He closed his eyes.

Three pairs of feet were approaching, making him look up. As soon as he recognized them, his eyes narrowed and he straightened.

"Jarod," one of the three men greeted.

"Agent Malone, agent Fitzgerald, agent Taylor," Jarod replied tensely.

"How's your son?" agent Fitzgerald asked.

"Certainly not good enough to be questioned," he stated firmly, leaving no room for discussion. He still stood with his back directly to the door, building a wall the agents would have to break to get to Jay.

Agent Malone shook his head, "That's not why we are here."

Jarod's eyebrow rose. "No? Why are you here then?" his tone of voice was coloured with suspicion, caution and a hint of warning.

"Our investigation here is finished and we came to see how your son was before we head back to New York," Martin stated calmly.

Jarod looked at them and then relaxed slightly. "Physically he's on his way to recovery but psychologically…" he trailed off. "We just had a rough night that was interrupted by more nightmares than I want to remember."

"Unfortunately, that's nothing uncommon for abduction victims," Agent Malone spoke up.

"I know, but I don't really think this is comparable," Jarod replied icily.

Malone shook his head sadly. "Yes and no. Basically the fears and nightmares are similar in every case, but your son certainly endured cruel torture during the hours he had to spent in that building."

Jarod sighed. "When do I have to expect the other agents who will come to try and question him, Parker and I about what happened?"

"They're still busy with their investigation and sweeping the building, but I guess you have no more than a few hours to a day at the most," Fitzgerald said sympathetically.

Jarod nodded. "Only to be expected. I'm sorry I gave you such a hard time with your investigation."

"No harm done, and after what you experienced I can't even say I blame you," Malone waved a dismissive hand.

Jarod held out his hand. "Thank you, agent Malone," he said earnestly.

The agent shook the offered hand firmly and when Jarod turned to the younger agents and did the same.

"And thank you, agent Fitzgerald and Taylor just as well. Oh, do you have any information about what happened to the key-players? Parker already told me about Mr. Lyle and Mr. Cox but what about Mr. Raines?" Jarod asked, looking at both agents.

Agent Malone nodded. "Mr. Raines was found dead in his office. He obviously shot himself through the head before our men could get to him."

Jarod raised a suspicious eyebrow. "He's dead?"

"That's our information, yes," Danny affirmed.

"Forgive me my scepticism but that man has come back from the dead again more times than I can recount. Where is his corpse being held?"

"He has been transported to Dover as far as I know. You'll have to speak about that with the agents that you know will come here sooner or later," Malone said.

"Yes, I'll do that," Jarod stated firmly. Before he could do anything else, a scream reached his ears through the closed door to his son's room, making him spin on his heel and burst into the hospital room.

Parker was trying to calm the young man down and Jay's eyes were wide with fear as they darted around the room.

Once the door opened, Parker briefly turned towards it and saw Jarod standing in the door frame.

With three big strides Jarod was at her side.

Jay's eyes flew over to him and he flinched, drawing up his hands to protect himself before recognition flickered into the deep brown eyes. When he identified his father he let his arms sink and whimpered, his eyes filling with tears once more.

The agents that stood in the door frame watched the scene unfold itself in front of them and shared a sad glance at what the family would have to go through in the near future.

Jay caught the movement and his eyes flew over to the men that stood in the doorway. Taking in their appearance, he whimpered and stretched out a hand as if he wanted to shield them off with it. He was trying to get as far away from them as possible, shivering in Jarod's arms and mumbling the word 'no' over and over again.

The agents shared another glance, this time frowning. "Why is he afraid of us?" Agent Fitzgerald asked.

Parker was about to answer that Jay was afraid of every stranger at the moment but then Jarod looked up at them and tried to see the men through the eyes of the frightened boy that clung to him. "Dark suits," he said, "Sweepers' attire."

"Excuse me?" Agent Malone asked.

Parker drew in a shaky breath, looking at the agents again, knowing what Jarod and therefore Jay meant. "He thinks you are Sweepers."

The three agents shared another glance and turned around to leave the family alone.

"No, stay please," Jarod's voice followed them, making them halt, but before they could question his request he had his attention already focussed back on Jay. They retook their positions in the doorframe and shot Parker a questioning glance, but she just told them to stay where they were with a gesture of her hand.

"Jay," Jarod called softly. "Jay, I want you to look up at the three men again," Jarod said evenly but Jay shook his head, his face still buried in Jarod's chest. "Jay, come on," Jarod's voice was stern but yet gently. "I want you to look at them; to look real good."

Jay didn't reply.

"Jarod, I think it's ok. You shouldn't ask that of him," agent Fitzgerald said.

Jarod's head whipped around and his eyes bore into the agents. "Just stay there, please," the tone of his voice nearly betrayed the 'please'. The agents nodded slowly and Jarod turned back to Jay.

"Come on, Jay. I want you to look up now," Jarod ordered firmly but gently. "I want you to look at them closely and then I want you to tell me if they really look like Sweepers."

It took a few minutes for Jay to work up the courage to do as Jarod had asked him. Jarod stayed silent, not wanting to apply more pressure on the boy. He was certain that because he was still sitting there calmly next to him, Jay would register that the situation couldn't be that dangerous. He knew that Jay would eventually look up.

And he did.

Fear was still written all over his face when Jay looked at the agents. He looked them over but didn't look into their eyes.

Jarod felt him trembling slightly and he increased his hold on him, giving him strength and reassurance through the grip.

Jay looked away again after the silent observation and Jarod gave him a few moments before he spoke up once more.

"And?" he asked gently. "Are they Sweepers?"

"No."

"No," Jarod affirmed. "They're FBI agents and they were responsible for your case."

Jay looked up at the men again and this time he let his gaze wander up to their faces and he briefly met their gazes.

"Agent Taylor," Jarod spoke without turning. "Would you mind coming here for a second?" he asked and added "slowly." He purposefully chose one of the younger agents because he didn't show any similarities to a 'normal' burly Sweeper and he was wearing a lighter suit.

The agent didn't question the father's command. The man seemed to know exactly what he was doing and so he slowly stepped into the room.

Jay's head whipped around again and he tensed.

"Stop," Jarod said calmly and the young agent halted in his movements. "Jay. I'm here and your mom is here. We wouldn't let anyone we didn't trust come close to you and you know that."

Jay nodded slowly and swallowed.

"Ok, Danny," Jarod consciously used the agent's forename to further disarm the situation.

Agent Taylor took another careful step and another one until he was standing directly in front of the bed.

Jay's eyes were never leaving the agent but he seemed to relax slowly. His father soothingly stroked his back.

"Hey, kiddo," Danny said gently, a softer version of his trademark smirk on his face. It usually worked to make a suspect comfortable so he gathered it would do in this situation as well.

The boy swallowed but didn't reply.

"You know, I heard a lot about you when we were working on your case. It's nice to finally meet you in person," Danny went on. "We wanted to know how you were before we went back to New York with our team and that's why we came here today."

Jay tilted his head slightly and relaxed further.

"See," Jarod spoke to Jay in soft tunes. "I told you that they were harmless. They came here to see you."

Jay looked up at his father and then he nodded and turned back to the agent that stood in front of him. "Thank you," he mumbled quietly. Though his voice was quivering and Danny could tell that he was still not entirely comfortable with the situation, his eyes were clear and he now met the agent's gaze bravely.

Danny smirked again and winked at him. "It's our job but… you're very welcome."

"Jay, I want agent Fitzgerald and Malone to come here as well so that you can say hello to them just as you did to their fellow agent," Jarod said and motioned for agent Malone and Fitzgerald to enter the room.

Jay's eyes moved over to the slowly approaching agents but he stayed calm this time.

Jarod shot Parker a look and she nodded, a smile playing at her lips.

"Hello Jay," Martin said softly when he stood next to his partner.

"Hello," Jay replied shyly, his eyes moving from Fitzgerald to Malone and back to Danny.

"Agent Malone there is Danny and Martin's superior. He's leading the team that is entirely focussed on finding missing persons," Jarod explained.

Jay surprised the agents when he extended a slightly shaking hand towards them.

Agent Malone was the first to shake it very gently and Danny and Martin followed suite.

Jarod slowly released his grip on Jay and got up from the bed nonchalantly. He observed Jay's body language and happily noted that he didn't tense up or withdraw now that he was sitting alone on the bed without the reassurance of either Parker or him directly next to the boy.

A proud grin lingered on his face when he watched the young man working through one of the problems he would be encountering in the future.

They would have to work hard but eventually Jay would set the trauma the Centre had made him go through behind him. A huge mountain of problems still lay in front of them but Jarod was determined to restore Jay's self-confidence and to work hard to make the personality that had been destroyed so brutally whole again.

He silently vowed that he wouldn't stop before he had succeeded, no matter how long it took.

To be continued…


	15. Freedom lies beneath reality

Disclaimer: see part one.

Author's Note: So, yeah, I finally managed to finish this up. Originally I had planned on a sequel but as I said in the last chapter, I wasn't quite happy with this going any longer and because of that I will not make a sequel. Sorry. I hope this is an ok ending for the story anyway. Enjoy!

x x x x x x x

The Past Always Catches Up Part 15

_Freedom lies beneath reality_

It had taken a long time for Jay to work through the worst of what had happened. He wasn't the same person he'd been before his ordeal – and Jarod guessed he would never be again. What had happened had left scars too deep to fade.

There was still a shadow in the young man's eyes – a shimmer of something Jarod knew was to be found in his eyes as well. A dark corner hidden from most people, from those who didn't look close enough. Only those who knew what had happened or those who had endured similar things in their lives would know where to look for that shadow and how to recognize it.

Jarod watched from the cabin as Jay stood close to the waterline of the lake, hands buried in his trouser pockets, his gaze seemingly lost on an indeterminable point of the water's surface.

His gaze was drawn away from Jay and towards the mountains, scarlet red overcastting the usually blunt grey rocks. Jarod smiled at the sight of the sun just starting its journey. He pushed away from the railing and slowly walked down the small path to where Jay stood.

Jay tensed and turned around, relaxing when his eyes came to rest on Jarod and finding a reassuring smile lingering on the older man's features.

"Hey," Jarod greeted.

Jay nodded. "Hey," he murmured back.

"You're up early. You didn't plan on going without me, did you?" Jarod asked, amusement in his voice.

Laughing softly, Jay shook his head. "No, I'd have troubles securing myself." There was a brief pause while they stood silently side by side, watching the sun crawling up and casting a long red stripe on the water, soft waves giving the color shadows and shapes. "Couldn't sleep," Jay admitted softly without turning to Jarod.

Jarod gave a small nod, not reacting otherwise. There was nothing more to say – they'd turned the words over and over in countless conversations. It sometimes made it easier but generally at the light of day, shadows were smaller than they were at night when silence settled and thoughts took over; what had been pushed to the very edge of consciousness during the day, distraction of life being used as a shield, couldn't be avoided at night.

"It would probably always be that way – sleepless nights alternating with nights filled with a tentative, blissful silence when their minds finally relented."

Jarod clapped the other man on the shoulder and drew him slightly closer in a brief gesture of reassurance before releasing him again afterwards. "Come on, we should use the day as we planned."

His eyes still on the water, Jay smiled and nodded, then slowly turned around, meeting Jarod's eyes for a moment. "Let's go then. Let's see if you're still able to catch up with me on the wall."

Jarod laughed, falling in step next to Jay. "Ha, you think you can beat me already? Hate to break it to you, youngster, but you'll have to practise more for that."

Jay smirked. "We'll see about that. Grab your gear and we'll definitely see about that."

Chuckling, Jarod let Jay walk in front of him on the small path, watching the shadows around them slowly fade back as the sun drew higher and light touched on the shapes around them, forcing darkness back for the day.

The End


End file.
